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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27433669">Glasses are actually a beautiful disguise</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kinococha/pseuds/Kinococha'>Kinococha</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Attempt at Humor, F/F, Fleur wears glasses, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Hogwarts Fourth Year, I rewrote the fourth book and made it gay, Misunderstandings, Nerdy Fleur, Queer Character, Romance, Sassy OC, They should just talk, really - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 01:14:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>23,238</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27433669</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kinococha/pseuds/Kinococha</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hermione has no ideia that the cute girl she came across while been on a family trip at France is participating in the Triwizard Tournament. No, seriously she has no idea. Meanwhile, Fleur is a mess. She doesn't know how to act around the girl she spend her summer pinning over and by Merlin sakes can't recognize her. Co. posted on FF.net</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Fleur Delacour/Hermione Granger</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>304</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue: Love at first read</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello guys, I'm passing soe fics to this site too. You can find the same fic on FF.net written by me Kinoco-cha. Hope you all liked this nonsense I wrote :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><span>"</span><em><span>The thrall may lure the eyes to see a desirable being. But actions are their burden to charge. Show the desire. Never control the body.</span></em> <em><span>For nothing can create love but a human heart</span></em><span>.</span><em><span>" - a veela saying </span></em></p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>
  <span>  Words are like breathing. Only realizing you are surrounded by them when starting pay close attention. They are not just on a street sign or writing on a paper message. People breathe words because they never stop thinking. You can't escape your own mind. But you are able to share. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Share your own with the help of speech or writing. It's not just a simple channel. It's a raw form of magic. This is what Hermione loves and hates the most. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  The girl was never good at communicating. Of course, she is able to say perfectly what is on her mind and what she wants but that is not enough to make friends. Friendship needs a connection. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span> Forming bonds has always been incredibly difficult for her. Always the weird, bossy, know It all. She couldn't understand what the other children wanted, couldn't be what the other children wanted her to be. That's why her first friend was a book. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  While the other children wouldn't want to associate with the teacher's pet she found comfort in books. Books don't insult you when you try to help someone. They don't judge because you are different. They have the knowledge and were made to share it. If her words could not reach others at least the words of others could reach her. She would never be alone as long as she had words to read.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Hogwarts changed things. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  When Hermione found out that she is a witch the only thing she felt was a relief. And hope. As listened to Professor Mcgonagall explaining to her parents about the wizarding world a single thought resonated.</span>
  <em>
    <span> I'll finally find people like me, I can have friends. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  So she got ready. With the possibility of making human friends, she again turned to books. After the visit to Diagon alley, she decided to learn as much as possible about this new world. Not only did she finish her school books for the year, but she also convinced her parents to buy some extras. Like </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hogwarts a story</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Thought that if she was prepared it would be easier. It wasn't. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Her classmates still didn't understand her. She still couldn't communicate well, even though she had read, had prepared herself, the connection was not there. But then Harry and Ron arrived. The bathroom incident was the final key to finally receiving what her heart craves most. Human touch. Now there were few things that this loyal lion wouldn't do to keep her friends. Copying her homework was one of them but still, they are happy with her. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  The memories of almost three years ago were what keeps Hermione smiling while she explored this new library. Well, that and the smell of open pages of stories. Hermione's mother, Jean, was actually French. Every year the couple with their daughter took a trip through the south of France to visit her part of the family. The girl especially enjoyed spending the afternoon with her grandmother. The woman always had some story to tell and was extremely happy to be able to spend time with her granddaughter even if it was to take her to the city library. She left her to walk freely around the building while distracting herself at a table with some cookbook or cheesy romance. When they finished their respective books they would visit the cafe next door to talk about what they had read. She really loves her granny. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Her grandmother was sitting on a sofa in the corner while Hermione was still deciding what to read. She was so immersed squatting in front of the shelves reading the titles that she didn't notice the stranger approaching. Unfortunately, the stranger didn't notice her either, resulting in what can only be described as an ugly fall of the two at the floor. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Oh mon Dieu, Je suis désolé! Est-ce que tu vas bien?" </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Hermione took a while to process that she had been knocked down. And frankly, she would be quite irritated if it weren't for the sincere regret in the stranger's voice. But as always, her social inability could not fail to appear in this type of situation. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"You are still on top of me." that is what came out of her mouth when she takes a glance at the other girl. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Which was enough to make her jump and walk at least five feet away from Hermione. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"I'm sorry!" The girl said with a strong french accent as she convulsively bowed her head in apology. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Well, the girl registered that she had spoken in English at least and apparently the other one knew the language. Hermione speaks fluent French thanks to the convenience of growing up in a bilingual family. But the tall girl seemed to be making the effort to communicate in a language that was comfortable for Hermione so it was time for her to act accordingly. And the lack of response was making the tall one blush even more so it was time to end the other girl's misery. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"It's ok really! I was close to the ground. The fall was nothing." </span>
  </em>
  <span>replied in French trying to calm the other one </span>
  <em>
    <span>"Are you ok? you fell too." </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"No, no… I mean yes! I'm ok!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>repeated as she waved her hands over her face </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I think I just lost my glasses." </span>
  </em>
  <span>her face was still incredibly red.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Hang on." </span>
  </em>
  <span>She did a quick sweep of the floor and found the girl's glasses just below the shelf… They were round bottle glasses. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wow, her vision must be worse than Harry's, I'm not surprised that she hasn't seen me. "Here." </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>"Merci." timidly thanked while receiving her glasses and put them back on the face. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Now that they no longer had the distraction of apologies. Hermione could pay attention to the girl's face. They must have been around the same age or just a few years apart, she being taller than Hermione. Her face was now almost completely blocked by thick glasses and a messy ponytail completed her appearance. </span>
  <em>
    <span>She is cute.  </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  One thing her friends knew about Hermione was that she was definitely a complete nerd. One thing they didn't know about her yet was that she is definitely attracted to other nerdy girls. Now her hands were starting to sweat because that girl was the stereotypical definition of a nerd sitcom and she doesn't know how to handle people much less an adorable girl!  </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"I'm really sorry for what I did."  </span>
  </em>
  <span>the cute girl starts to ramble </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I got distracted trying to find a book for my sister and I didn’t pay attention to where I was going and almost got you hurt in the process." </span>
  </em>
  <span>she fiddled with her glasses while she spoke. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Yup, definitely cute</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Hey, hey it's really ok it was an accident I don't blame you and nobody got hurt either." </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Still…" </span>
  </em>
  <span>Hermione didn't let her finish the sentence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"Hi, my name is Hermione. We can be friends If you want." </span>
  </em>
  <span>said while presenting her hand for a handshake. But the girl didn't answer, just stared at the offered hand for a few seconds. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Great, now you are making the situation weird, way to go, Granger! </span>
  </em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>  Hermione was so busy having an internal monologue that she hardly notices that the other girl was shaking her hand back. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>"My name is Fleur, I would like to be your friend." </span>
  </em>
  <span>her shy smile was genuine</span>
  <em>
    <span>. </span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Do I know you? Nah It can't be</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  With the Headmaster announcing the start of the Triwizard Tournament, the students couldn't talk about anything else. Seriously they couldn't shut up. Living in a boarding school isolated from the rest of the world makes people desperate for any kind of news as if it were their biggest treasure in the world. It was no joke the Hogwarts gossip channel. However, the only one who didn't seem remotely interested in the big gossip of the year was Hermione. She quite frankly had better things to do. But Albus Dumbledore, the great Headmaster of all times, decided to give the students the free day to receive the new guests. Saying the girl was pissed was very far from the truth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  After making the students waiting in the cold of a Scottish night for the arrival of not only a pirate boat anchored in the Black Lake but also a big flying chariot. Hermione was sure she couldn't escape the gossip channel anymore. Her roommates, Lavender and Parvati, were, with no doubt, spending the night chattering. Definitely, saying she was pissed was very far from the truth. Why couldn't she have a normal school year for once? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  And that was exactly why she couldn't care to pay any attention to the Headmaster's speech not even in the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang beautiful opening presentation at the Great Hall. She was too concerned with destroying her mashed potatoes to care about anything else. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione, what did these potatoes do to you?" Harry was one of the few to notice the prominent scowl on the girl's face and couldn't help but question.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's nothing really" she sighed "I just have a lot on my mind that's all" she took the break to take a bite out of her really mashed potato. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, I know what is on her mind" snapping her fingers Ginny completed "Today is Tuesday!" She has a suspicious grin while saying this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well yeah, and?" Ron with his face stuffed with food wasn’t understanding the relationship the date have to be with the girl's scowl. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Moron" The redhead repressed her dense brother "She is annoyed that with the arrival of the schools she will not have time to deliver her letter to her muggle girlfriend." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ginevra Weasley! She. Is. Not. My. Girlfriend." Hermione scowl finally vanished giving it way to a solid blush. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So" honestly that girl was a tease "You are not denying that you wanted to be delivering your letter instead of being here." ended by pointing an accusing finger at her friend.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   Despite Hermione and Ginny been from different years, the two girls considered themselves close friends. They had shared a room during the Quidditch Cup and bonded over their lack of social skills and love for books. In the younger girl case, her love was more towards fiction literature. But books are books for Hermione so they share a nice friendship. She even told the redhead about her meeting with the super cute French girl that occurred while visiting her relatives. Now she regrets this a little because she let slip that she thought the shy girl was cute and Ginny, being the romantic she was, never let that detail pass.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  After their first bump in the library, they ended up spending most of the afternoon talking about books, nothing, and everything at all. Her parents were delighted to know that she had managed to make a friend outside of school and they encouraged their friendship. For the rest of the time she had stayed at her granny's house, they often agreed to meet at the city library. Sometimes even at the café next door. For the first time, outside of Hogwarts, she managed to make a friend who seemed as invested in the relationship as she was. Fleur was easy to talk to despite her shyness. She was clever, honest, and very, very adorable. The way she held her glasses while explaining something made the girl's heart race faster than a car engine. And this could be Hermione's imagination talking but whenever the two meet, she would have a huge smile just for the younger girl. This was becoming way more than a simple crush. </span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>  When her trip came to an end they agreed in exchanging letters. It would be much faster to exchange emails but Hogwarts has a policy of not allowing muggle technology inside the castle. Some bullshit about magic interfering in electronics. But at least like Gringotts, the wizarding world had an exchange system with the muggle mail, It was just signing a form that her letter would arrive at the other girl's house without the concern of revealing the magic. So</span> <span>letters would have to serve. But being the perfect creature that Fleur was, she didn't bother at all with the slowest vehicle of communication. She even emphasized that she preferred it that way because they would have time to miss each other between the letters. She also could read the girl's pompous handwriting. </span><em><span>So cute. </span></em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    
  </em>
  <span>"No" responded firmly despite her still pink cheeks "I'm not denying." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Honestly Hermione you should be more excited, we are having Viktor Krum here for the Triwizard Tournament!" Ron said between bites "you can send your mate the message another day you don't have to be all rushed about it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ginny and Harry Just share a look. How this boy could be this dense? Harry was about to intervene on behalf of the girl when a presence made herself be known.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Excuse me" the stranger began to speak with a strong French accent "May I have the bouillabaisse?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ron's mouth drop and his face started to turn purple. Hermione found the boy's reaction curious. The Beauxbatons' girl just asked a simple question. Honestly, the boy sometimes impressed her with his lack of decorum, he managed to be worse than her in social situations.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, you can have It." Harry manage to answer. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Have you finished with this?" The girl's gaze was fixed on Hermione while asking the question. As if she would only be allowed to have the dish with the smart witch approval. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   Actually, came to think about It the french girl was openly staring at Hermione. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Do I have anything on my teeth?</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes!" apparently Ron managed to get out of his trance "It was delicious! Very yummy indeed!" said the guy who thought the name of the dish was a sneeze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Although had the approval to be able to pick up the plate. The girl, never even breaking eye contact, painfully slowly removed the plate from the table as if waiting for something. But, for her displeasure, it never came.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Merci." with the food in hand she reluctantly turned and went back to her table. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She is a veela!" the boy still half purple shouted. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>"Honestly Ronald she is not." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"How can you say that Hermione! Just look at her!" motion the blond angel with his hands.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Truly to his words as the girl walked she was turning a lot of heads. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sure, she is aesthetically pleasing but it doesn’t mean she is a veela."  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Aesthetically pleasing?" Ginny cutting of her brother ramble for a question "don't you mean pretty?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well, yeah sure she is pretty I guess." The girl replied while scratching her head. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't seem so sure about that Mione." it was Harry's turn to intervene. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione started to feel a little awkward with her friends' questions. Okay</span>
  <em>
    <span>, how to put it into words.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's… It's like a muffin." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"A what?" the three, surprised with the strange phrase, spoke at the same time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah, a muffin" now that she had started she would finish this analogy "My favorite dessert is a muffin. And ok, sure it may not be like a truffle. But even if I managed to agree that the truffle is much better than the muffin in terms of flavor like a truffle is a truffle and a muffin is a muffin. The truffle is just has a taste of expensive stuff that doesn't appeal to me. While the muffin, although not considered the tastiest is the one I would choose." the girl was very satisfied because she managed to finish her explanation. But her three friends were still looking at her with a strange look. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hold on" Ron was the one breaking the silence "Are you trying to say that she is just too beautiful to be your type?" The girl nod "That's even a thing?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Like I said I recognize that she is aesthetically pleasing she is just not my muffin." spoke as she got up from the table "I go to the owlery while I still have time see you all in the common room." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  As she said goodbye to her friends little did she know that a pair of sad blue eyes followed her through Hogwarts's halls. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The muffin  theory is based on a real conversation I had with my friends. I'm Hermione in this case :v</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. You can't break a cold heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>The real reason this fic is classified as Teen is because I curse a lot... I mean the characters curse a lot! Fuck.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  When Fleur was accepted into the summer exchange program for her Muggle Studies class she was not even surprised. As one of the top students of her year, this was just what people expected from her. As part of the program, she would spend part of the summer with a muggle-born witch family. So, this way she could get to know life without magic up close eyes. Of course, she had to fill in a lot of reports about the experience but that did not discourage her. Until two weeks of the experience.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  You see Fleur has veela blood. Even if she is only a quarter this was enough to cause uncomfortable situations for the teenager. The problem is called a thrall. She hates her thrall. The girl doesn't hate who she is, veelas are proud creatures and would never forget their origins. She carries her wand with the nucleus of her grandmother's feather proudly and nothing would change that. But the thrall. It's just annoying. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Most people who come to talk to her are only stuck in a trance. Unfocused eyes. Fake smiles. Lies. As a defense mechanism, she created a facade. She became cold. It is hard not to be when you are constantly interrupted by males who think they are the best option for her to spend her time with because of something beyond your control. Encouraging those affected has never been an option for her. The Beauxbatons students call her the Ice Queen. Beautiful as an ice sculpture but with no warmth to give. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Loneliness was what she chose. Loneliness was what she knew the most. If she couldn't deal with people at least books she would have. You are never alone when you are surrounded by words from other minds. Books were her escape from a world that didn't understand her. People who didn't care to know the heart behind the mask. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Sometimes she just wishes to be left alone in that fake world. And that's when an idea came up. What if she managed to minimize the thrall effects? It was a promise of peace that couldn't be refused. The loneliness would be worth it now, hours of studies and delicate tests led her to conclude some hypotheses. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  A veelas thrall acts more as a defense mechanism than hunting instinct as many scholars point out. Humans don't attack what they think is beautiful, they tend to protect It. The effects are very easily comparable to pheromones in some ways. Being released largely by sweat in stressful situations. The greatest concentration, however, is found at the top of the head. After a few attempts, Fleur discovered that the simple act of pinning her hair down dramatically reduced the effects. But, that's still not enough. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Another curious fact that she discovered was the importance of eye contact. For the trance effect to be efficient, it was necessary to look towards the victim. But simply rolling her eyes or not looking directly at the person is not strong enough to cancel it. So the idea for glasses. A pair of glasses so thick that eye contact was next to impossible. She would not be able to see with them if she hadn't enchanted the lenses. The fact that they covered half of her face was also a bonus. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  With only these two discoveries together, she finally could practically pass for a human without creature blood. People would have to look twice to be merely affected by the thrall. Of course, she couldn't always use it. Her grandmother would kill her if she knew she was distorting a trace of her ancestors. Nobody wants to be on the other side of a full blood veela fury.  So she only used her disguise when she needed time to recharge the spirit batteries. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   After two weeks on the exchange program, she felt the need to use it again. Wanted to walk through the city library without having to put the cold bitch act. And that's how she bumped into Hermione. Literally.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She was so ashamed of falling on top of the girl that she ended up turning into a ramble ball. And the younger girl was so kind about the situation that it was almost unbelievable. Fleur could count on her fingers the number of people who had already been kind to her without being in a trance or be family. When the girl offered her hand with the promise of friendship it was a shock. Fleur knows lies, knows a false expression when she sees it. She lived surrounded by them, there was no way not to know. But that smile. That smile was genuine. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <em>
    <span>It was so warm.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  For someone who lives surrounded by coldness to accept that offer of friendship was like breathing fresh air after drowning. She didn't even think twice. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They became close during the summer. Fleur was increasingly fascinated by the girl. It didn't take effort to keep the conversation going, the words never once stopped coming and the time they spent together flew so fast. Each second was precious. She has never been happier. Keeping the letters they exchanged as her greatest tesserae. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  However, Hogwarts came. Her heat source was just a few tables away. But Hermione paid no attention to her. In fact, when she tried to get the girl's attention, there wasn't a drop of recognition. It was like looking at a stranger. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur was screwed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"She doesn't remember me Diana!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>the distressed girl could only repeat this while walking around on the carriage floor. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Fleur, she writes to you all week." </span>
  </em>
  <span>Her friend didn't even take her eyes off the book she was reading while answering</span>
  <em>
    <span> "How can she not remember you?" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Well, she clearly didn't recognize me then! And this is much worse!" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"This is easy to solve just go there and introduce yourself again." </span>
  </em>
  <span>How this girl kept the highest grades in the class was a mystery to Diana. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"But what if she doesn't like this version of me?"</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You're joking, right?" </span>
  </em>
  <span>The nerve of this girl </span>
  <em>
    <span>"You are literally the same person she met in the summer!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>Ok, now she was looking at the blonde disaster.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Diana, there's a reason why people call me The Ice Queen I am a bitch!" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Well, so stop been one!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>She was tired </span>
  <em>
    <span>"she'll find out eventually it will be better If It comes out of your mouth." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I can't lose her Diana, she is the only one who doesn't respond to my thrall in this form!" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur noticed this. It's a defense mechanism so no matter the gender of a person everyone is affected by a veelas thrall. But Hermione showed no signs of being under its influence. There was nothing on the girl's face that said otherwise. And finding someone like that is like finding a fish in the desert. Just impossible. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I'm scared, I never felt this way about anyone before her"</span>
  </em>
  <span> she was on the verge of tears </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I can't Just fuck this up." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Diana is not a tactful person by any means. But even she realized when someone needed a hug. If her friend needed comfort, the comfort she would have.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Look." </span>
  </em>
  <span>said as she wrapped her arms around the girl </span>
  <em>
    <span>"freaking out in the room won't solve anything. if she is the same girl you have been telling me about I doubt she will care that you are a big ass hore sometimes" </span>
  </em>
  <span>Fleur snorts </span>
  <em>
    <span>"she's your friend before, why wouldn't she accept you?" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I just don't want to hurt her like I always do." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Don't push her away, you will only regret it if you do it." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I'm still scared." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I know. It's scary to feel, but you are going to figure this out" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I hope so." </span>
  </em>
  <span>Whispered her desire to not ruin everything. </span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Diana is the voice of reason in this fic.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The tale of two Fleurs</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  The best way to deal with a problem is to face it. Hermione is a solemn believer of that phrase. She wouldn't have been able to keep Harry and Ron alive over the years if she didn't follow that. The girl is a planner. She analyzes, studies the best possible strategy, and puts it into practice. Every. Fucking. Time. However, this does not apply to people. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  After much analysis, she realized that the best way to deal with people was not to deal with them at all. Being an antisocial and socially weirdo she was that logical line was not only perfect, but it was also infallible. And it was exactly this way that the smart witch was dealing with Beauxbatons and Durmstrang student body. By hiding in the library.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Not that it wasn't normal to spend much of her time at that place. But Dumbledore announced two weeks ago the champions of each school and to no one's surprise, Harry was one of them as well. Of course, the universe couldn't give her the grace of a quiet school year. What she was even thinking! </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She immediately believed the boy when the boy confessed he had not put his name on the Goblet. Why he would do it in the first place? He was a troublemaker not crazy for Merlin's sake. But Ron was having a hard time seeing the truth blinded by his silly grudge. So Harry was forced to compete in the tournament, their best friends weren't talking to each other and the foreign students started some sort of campaign against the boy's participation! This stress level was certainly not healthy for her heart. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  On top of all this, she didn't have the proper time to write a letter to Fleur. One of her reasons for hiding in the library, besides avoiding human beings, was to be able to have a quiet place to write a reply to the blonde last letter. That had been the smallest letter she received since they started exchanging messages. Hermione knew she was busy with schoolwork and did not hold it against the other girl. Yet, she missed reading the sweet words they exchanged. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  While looking at the shelves in search of something to help Harry stay alive during the tournament she pulled out a book about the history of magic regulations. And then she fell. In fact, she was pushed to the floor. Again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p><span>"I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going!"</span> <span>a voice with a strong French accent starts apologizing. </span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  This brought some memories back… </span>
  <em>
    <span>wait a minute! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur?" lifting her head off the floor Hermione found the pair of glasses she so much adores "It's really you!" Hermione held the other girl's hands while smiling from ear to ear "I can't believe I'm meeting you here! Wait, what you're doing here you are supposed to be in France!" despite being confused the joy present in her words has not diminished. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur wanted to scream. Right there in front of her was the object of all her recent emotional turmoil. Just right on the day, she decided to take some time off for herself because the blonde was no longer bearing the presence of her own colleagues' bitterness because they weren't  Beauxbatons chosen champion. She was not ready to face Hermione yet. Her feelings were not in the right place to have this kind of conversation! But with the other girl holding her hands so happy she couldn't simply cast a memory spell and run through the corridors to hide in her room until the end of the school year. Because for the first time in months. Hell in years even. She regained her warmth just by looking into those bright eyes. Running was not an option. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm… I'm here for the tournament! I'm a  Beauxbatons student!" </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ok, great start just ramble the most obvious thing that comes to your head Delacour! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fortunately, Hermione was so distracted by the happiness of the reunion with her friend that she didn't pay attention to the nervousness which the other had spoken.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I can't believe It, you are a witch too! And you are here at Hogwarts's!" Hermione's excitement only increased as she spoke "We can have our chats in the library again!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  This conversation is certainly not going the way Fleur expected. She had prepared for the worst of rejections ever. But here she was. Still lying on the floor holding the hands of the other girl who looked at her as if she were the most colorful sunset in the sky. Her heart was beating so fast it looked like it would run out of her throat at any moment. She was almost forgetting that she needed to breathe to live. Hermione was the only thing she could think of. The only thing she wants to think of. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"May I have my hands back? I need them to get up." said the nerdy girl with her most flirty smile. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Smooth get some of your veela confidence girl! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh right!" Hermione blushes while freeing the other girl hands and getting up herself "I'm just really happy you are here, I got lost for a moment." Said while scratching her hair embarrassed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Me too, I'm very happy that I bumped into you again." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They stayed in a comfortable silence like this. Just looking at each other's eyes smiling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You know what's funny? The Beauxbatons champion is also called Fleur and I couldn't stop thinking about the coincidence since I heard it" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah about that…" she should have said it louder because Fleur was cut off before she could explain the situation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Having people with the same name in the room must be boring." she pondered "I had three Matheus in my kindergarten class and it was always a mess when the teachers shouted that name." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  There are times when your brain just shuts down and the part that keeps you from talking shit run lose without your control. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>"Yes... It is tiring sometimes." </span>
  <em>
    <span>Why are you agreeing with this bullshit! How you can't see we are the same person! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't know how your schedule is but can we meet every now and then?" She moved her feet from side to side in a nervous gesture as if afraid to bother the other girl too much "we can even do just a study session to not disturb you so much If you would prefer?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur bit her lip. </span>
  <em>
    <span>This is a dream? Is she really nervous that I refuse that wonderful request? Oh, she is doing that cute thing with her nose… </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hum, Fleur?" The blonde girl was so lost in her mind that she forgot that she had been asked a question.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't know when I will have time due to my… extracurricular activities" </span>
  <em>
    <span>does participate in the tournament count as an extracurricular activity? </span>
  </em>
  <span>"But any free time I get you will be the first to know." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Really?" her sweet voice sounded so hopeful with the reply Fleur fail to fight her grin. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Really, spending time with you is never a bother to me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>    They ended up leaving the library after catching up a little. Research and books are long forgotten. With the possibility of meeting again, both left with a warm heart. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Fleur. Was. Definitely. Completely. Utterly. Screwed. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Some people have comment that Fleur gives a Superman vibe. And I was just: WHY SUPERMAN AND NOT SUPERGIRL! THEY EVEN ARE BOTH BLONDES!  Anyway, it was just a coincidence... or maibe not :p How knows?</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. A veela will not say she is in love</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This title was inspired by the Hercules song. One day I maybe make a Fleurmione AU about it.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>   It would have been much easier to have heard Diana's advice and tell the truth to Hermione. Like, so much easier. The decision to simply agree that there were two Fleurs in the class was a completely unthinkable act on her part. Well… not unthinkable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  In the millisecond it took to answer her brain was haunted by flashbacks of all the interactions she had with the other students over the past few weeks. Stuck in a cold stone castle. With a bunch of hormonal teenagers who don't know what the world no means, unless it is followed by the phrase: </span>
  <em>
    <span>"Stop talking to me if you don't want to be hexed back to hell." </span>
  </em>
  <span>Seriously, nobody teaches people about limits these days? Besides having to deal with her </span>
  <em>
    <span>why she doesn't recognize me</span>
  </em>
  <span> situation. To say she had been a heartless bitch was far from reality. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>    So here she had a chance to confess she was the girl known as Ice Queen and be rejected by the person who opened her heart or continue to be seen as the nerdy girl who can still have study dates with Hermione. Fleur's mouth agreed before could even think about the mess she was getting into. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Fleur what were you even thinking about!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>Diana shouted when she finished hearing about their meeting.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The Beauxbatons students were very lucky that Fleur remembered to cast a silencing charm before delivering the bomb. That was the only reason Diana didn't wake up the carriage and the entire castle. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"How does she not know you are the same person? You have the same fucking name for Merlin's sake!" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"She doesn't know my last name." </span>
  </em>
  <span>Fleur low replied.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Whenever the blonde signed their letters she always used her middle name. Isabelle. She honestly just wore Delacour for official affairs giving preference to her middle name whenever the opportunity arises. Who could have predicted this would contribute to the mix-up problem?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"It's not that bad." </span>
  </em>
  <span>her attempt to ease the situation was not appreciated. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You are an imbecile, you know right?" </span>
  </em>
  <span>her tone was more bored than angry.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"I know" </span>
  </em>
  <span>she swallowed</span>
  <em>
    <span> "but what you wanted me to do! She just likes me when I'm wearing glasses!" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"How you know this?" </span>
  </em>
  <span>Diana pinched her forehead while answering</span>
  <em>
    <span> "You didn't even bother to talk to her without them." </span>
  </em>
  <span>She had a point. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Because everyone pays attention to me except her!" </span>
  </em>
  <span>As narcissistic the phrase is, it was still true. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Even without the help of the thrall, Fleur was still drop-dead gorgeous. It's not difficult to attract glances wherever she went. Except for the ones she wanted to attract. Not only did Hermione not recognize her but there was nothing. Not a single drop on her face saying she wanted to know this version of herself. Fleur saw this the first time she approached the messy hair girl at the Great Hall, and every other time the older witch watched her from afar through the halls. Her face never had the same glow that existed when they bumped into each other again at the library. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  That terrified Fleur.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Look I know I did a pretty big mess."  </span>
  </em>
  <span>said while playing with her fingers </span>
  <em>
    <span>"But until I am sure that she will accept me in both forms I just… Just I can't tell her yet." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The girl with the cold heart and sharp tongue is long gone. There before Diana was a creature in its most vulnerable state. Her friend for the first time in forever was allowing herself to feel. The blonde hands were shaking so badly she tried to hug herself trying to lessen the effect. The frozen heart was finally melting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You are afraid because you are in love with her." </span>
  </em>
  <span>a statement not a question. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"</span>
  <em>
    <span>I don't know." </span>
  </em>
  <span>Fleur almost cried saying that </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I don't know how love feels like, I have this feeling swallow my heart every time our eyes meet that I could say it's love, but, I can't even put these emotions into proper words."</span>
  </em>
  <span> she let out a long breath </span>
  <em>
    <span>"I will not do the irresponsibility of declaring my love to someone without being sure about my feelings first, especially when this concerns one of my only friends." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  No matter how ridiculous she got herself into this situation, there was still a little bit of maturity present in the 17 years girl. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Look I'm on your side ok, even if I still think this is a stupid idea."</span>
  </em>
  <span>Diana won't leave. Her sense of loyalty was too strong to allow that. But boy, she would have a headache later </span>
  <em>
    <span>"if the problem is getting this girl to like you just go there and talk to her, you manage to do that once how hard it could be?" </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You are right, how hard it could be?"</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Turns out the answer is extremely hard.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  While her glasses version managed to maintain a pleasant relationship with Hermione her pretty version couldn't even get close to the girl. No, seriously she literally couldn't get close. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>    Whatever chance Fleur had of initiating some sort of contact in the halls she was either interrupted by someone from her Fanclub or Hermione disappeared to help Harry or some teacher. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Trying to meet her at the library wasn't helping either. Viktor Krum had a suspicious interest in going there now and her and Victor's Fanclub didn't mix well. Even those who kept their distance could be incredibly loud which irritated Hermione and made her leave early. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  On top of that, due to Ron's tantrum with Harry, the boy who lived was spending most of his free time with the object of Fleur's affection. The only interaction they had was during the champion selection ceremony and she was not one of the most receptive beings to the boy's forced participation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She was sure he saw her as a spoiled brat. Just because Fleur made herself very clear that she was pissed at the boy's participation in the tournament. But who wouldn't be pissed? The boy was two years younger, he did not have the experience required to participate! Not to mention the fact this tournament was incredibly dangerous. There's clearly some kind of conspiracy going on against this boy. The headmaster was crazy in allowing him to participate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  With him almost always glued to Hermione's side she couldn't let herself approach. Charming more than one person was not in her plans, especially someone who already had a bad opinion of her. No, Fleur would have to approach the girl alone.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  Which was impossible because she never found the girl alone! Well, not her pretty version at least. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione. Sweet, caring Hermione. Insisted on cleaning some of her time to spend time with Fleur even with her heavy schedule. And the blonde was weak to deny anything coming from the smart witch. The progress she made with her glasses version was inversely proportional to the progress her pretty version obtain. Fleur was at the same time in paradise and hell. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   She was completely lost. The only way was to wait for the opportunity to appear. little did she know that it would appear sooner than she imagined.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Pretty girls don't cry</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>   Despite all the problems that were occurring around, Hermione was happy. Happy would not even be the best word to describe the state of euphoria in which she found herself. </p><p>  </p><p>  She was in love. </p><p> </p><p>  She couldn't call the warmth feeling a crush anymore. It would be far from the truth if she called It a simple crush. She was head over heels, madly in love with Fleur. Never in all her 15 years of life, Hermione thought she could love someone that way. Finding the girl in the library again was one of the best days of the year. Heck, of her life even. </p><p> </p><p>  It was worth all Ginny's teasing she had to put up with. The redhead could be a pain in the ass sometimes. But she was still an excellent friend. As soon as Hermione dragged her through Gryffindor's common room to ramble that her letter's friend was at the castle with one of the other schools the girl was the clear definition of supportive. Encouraging the girl to go on her dates with the blonde. That was the pain in the ass part. </p><p> </p><p>  Hermione didn't even bother to hide she was smitten with the blonde. In fact, she even admitted exactly that after only three minutes of conversation. Seeing that Hermione's relationship could be promoted to the next level just for the way the smart witch was talking about their interactions Ginny couldn't just let it slip through her fingers. She would be a very bad friend if she didn't encourage the girl with the only and truly ultimate act of friendship. By teasing the hell out of her. </p><p> </p><p> "Hey Hermione, when is your next 'study date' with your girlfriend again?" she made air quotes with her fingers while saying this. </p><p> </p><p>"Tuesday and she is not my girlfriend."</p><p> </p><p>"Yet." said while touching Hermione's nose with a bump sound. </p><p> </p><p>  Trying to control the growing blush that wanted to come Hermione merely removed the girl's finger from her face and continued walking towards the class as if she had not heard the other one. Ginny just kept walking behind her with a grin on her face. As they headed for the next class together they noticed a suspicious commotion near the potions room.</p><p> </p><p>  Harry and Draco were arguing. From what they could observe it had something to do with a button? That said Potter stinks? Siriously? How people could be so immature was beyond her ability to understand.</p><p> </p><p>  Draco, not satisfied with his childish attempt to humiliate the boy who lives, still dared to call Hermione mudblood. And that was the last straw that made Harry pull out his wand causing them to hex each other. At least try too. The only ones affected were Goyle and the girl whose honor he was trying to defend. Why men have to be so emotional in their fights?</p><p> </p><p>  And as if that weren't enough Snape still had the sinism to look at the girl's obviously unnatural growing teeth and say he saw no difference. Jerk. Hermione ran out in tears without even hearing her name being yelled by Ginny. </p><p> </p><p>  Going straight to the infirmary would have been a wise choice. But the girl was not in the right emotional state to think straight at the moment. She needed to calm down before she could deal with Madam Pomfrey's questions. Which was why against all logic she was crying in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. </p><p> </p><p>  Despite being a terrible place to do anything related to a bathroom due to the constant company of the ghost girl it was a great place to have a breakdown. You could be left to suffer and cry in peace. Nobody ever went there. At least no Hogwarts student went there. </p><p> </p><p>  Fleur impatiently opened the bathroom door. Madame Maxime had been keeping her on a strict training routine since the first task was announced. The only thing she wanted was to take a shower and sleep until her next meeting with Hermione. The Beauxbatons carriage was great but apart from the student's rooms, a common room, and the eventual toilet it was not equipped with showers. They had to restrain themselves from Hogwarts's ones. </p><p> </p><p>  The veela was irritated by the fact that the bathroom on the fifth floor had been closed due to some prank a suspected pair of twins had made. She would have to put up with the notorious ghost while cleaning herself.</p><p> </p><p>  <em> snif snif.  </em></p><p> </p><p>  <em> Speaking of the devil. </em> Fleur thought as she took her bath things from her bag. But, her heart was not prepared for what she heard next.</p><p> </p><p>"Hello? Myrtle? It's you?" </p><p> </p><p>  As much as Hermione's voice was squeaky and difficult to understand because of her new teeth, Fleur would recognize that voice anywhere. She could feel the anger rising for a completely different reason than the bathroom inconvenience. <em> Who made my Hermione cry!  </em></p><p> </p><p>  She was so possessed with murderer feelings that she didn't register the box door opening. </p><p> </p><p>"Fleur Delacour?" <em> Oh, fuck just what I needed now.  </em></p><p> </p><p>  It didn't matter that at that moment Fleur didn't have her glasses. Nor that she had not yet had a single interaction with the other girl in this form or that she was more sweaty than a pig on the farm. The tearful girl was more important.</p><p> </p><p>"What happened to you?" the soft question was an attempt to bring comfort to the situation. </p><p> </p><p>  But Hermione didn't register the tone, quickly covering her mouth with her hands and trying to avoid the other girl.</p><p> </p><p>"I'm fine." said with a still very sob voice.</p><p> </p><p>"You are clearly not." despite her direct words Fleur was very calm. </p><p> </p><p>  At least she appeared to be calm. She still had possible murder plans when found out who hexed the smart witch. Maybe it was this calm dementor that kept the crying girl talking. </p><p> </p><p>"I just stayed unfortunately in the middle of a hex." she sighed "I'm no big deal." </p><p> </p><p>"It is a big deal. You are crying." another direct answer. </p><p> </p><p>"Well, it's hard not to cry when you have beaver's teeth wanting to come out of your jaw!" even this small conversation effort was enough to cause pain.</p><p> </p><p>  She was ready to finally get out of that bathroom and visit Madam Pomfrey, as the girl should have done since the beginning when the following sentence stopped her.</p><p> </p><p>"I can heal you if you want." </p><p> </p><p>"You would heal me?" couldn't hide the disbelief in her voice.</p><p> </p><p>"It's a simple <em> reducio </em>spell, I can cast It for you." </p><p> </p><p>"Why?" She wasn't sure what Why she was asking for. </p><p> </p><p>   Why helping me? </p><p> </p><p>  Why were you being so kind to me? </p><p> </p><p>  Why even though we don't talk with each other I trust you? </p><p> </p><p>"Because you were crying." a simple and honest answer.</p><p> </p><p> It was enough to convince the other girl to agree.</p><p> </p><p>"Ok, you can cast." </p><p> </p><p>"Are you sure?" She still asked while preparing her wand for the work. </p><p> </p><p>"What more worst can happen?" that was Hermione's way of saying I trust you. </p><p> </p><p>  And Fleur spent too much time with the younger girl to be able to understand that. She indicated with her finger the bathroom mirror while speaking.</p><p> </p><p>"I just need you to let me know when they get to the original size again, ok." </p><p>
  
</p><p> Hermione nodded and Fleur began. Worked in silence, the teeth gradually reducing to the original size. The blonde noticed that Hermione missed a little more before indicating that her teeth were ok but decided not to comment for now. </p><p> </p><p>"There you go. Feeling better now?" </p><p> </p><p>"Yes" she passed the tongue between her new teeth "thanks Fleur, you didn't have to do this for me"</p><p> </p><p>"I know I didn't have to but offered because I wanted to." </p><p> </p><p>  How to decipher this girl. Known by all as the Ice Queen the cold heart bitch and yet showing an act of kindness just because she saw a stranger crying. <em> They are wrong about her.  </em></p><p> </p><p>"I should go back to class." said scratching her head. </p><p> </p><p>"Oh ok, I need to take my shower, that's why I was here anyway." momentarily remembered that she stinks and was still close to the girl. She mentally curses herself.</p><p> </p><p>  Hermione stopped in front of the door. Her back turned at the other girl, she added.</p><p> </p><p>"Really thank you Fleur you were... are very kind." She did not wait for an answer while leaving the girl alone in the bathroom.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You're the one who makes me kind.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>  The training could have wiped out Fleur's body. Two twins were still running around making pranks around the castle. She has yet to discover the wand owner who hexed Hermione. But none of that mattered at the moment. Pretty Fleur had finally made progress.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. A half-true is not a confession</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  Madame Maxime discovered in a rather suspicious way what the first task would be. Dragons. It had to be dragons. Why couldn't they be butterflies instead? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The good news was that with the physical training Fleur had been receiving she would have no problems in a fight. The bad news you don't fight with dragons. Like really, it's incredibly difficult with eight trained wizards locking one. A teenager with a magic stick has no chance. Crazy jurors and their stupid tournament. But before the girl could enter an endless curse spiral, her Headmaster had the decency to inform that she wouldn't need to fight per se.  Just take something from the fire-breathing beast in an arena full of students watching. Great, just fucking great. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  At least Diana was making herself useful and was helping Fleur with her research. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"How the hell you beat something that has an impenetrable skin to magic and can turn you into a barbecue?"</em> She said as closed the book with a bang. Diana was starting to get frustrated with this research. <em>"There is nothing in these books that teaches you how to defeat a dragon!"</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I don't have to defeat It.</em>" Fleur didn't even take her eyes off her paper pile as answered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Well, running away is no use the flying beast will follow you."</em> she pinched her nose while brainstorming <em>"if you can't fight or run away the only solution is some kind of distraction."</em> vaguely gestured with her hands as she said this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"What do you suggest I do then?"</em> Fleur finally faced her friend.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I. Don't. Know."</em> She raised her hands in an exasperation sign <em>"I don't have to have all the ideas here, I am terrible with Magical Creatures Care! Honestly why they couldn't send you to sing a lullaby to It?" </em></span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The brain is a curious thing. What people don't realize is that sometimes when they are bullshiting the things that come out of their mouth are not necessarily bullshit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"That's actually a good idea."</em> Fleur pointed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"A what now?"</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Diana thinks about It, you said to yourself that my only option would be a distraction. if I put the dragon to sleep I will simply have to recover what they sent me to without the danger of a wild magic animal trying to attack me!"</em> Fleur clapped her hands in excitement <em>"That's brilliant! I could kiss you right now!"</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Hey, save it for your girlfriend."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But Fleur didn't stop to hear the last comment. The girl ran out of the carriage with the same elegance of a wet goose towards the castle. More precisely to her favorite meeting place with a certain brunette. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Meanwhile, in the library, Hermione was not so lucky. Harry had figured out what the first task would be and he was screwed. Not only did the boy have to defeat a fire-breathing giant beast the Hogwarts staff also did the favor of removing from the library any book that had the word dragon in the title. He was screwed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione, despite almost developing gastritis at that point, wouldn't give up so easily. She had already instructed the boy to learn numerous spells that could be useful before the announcement of the first task. She just needed a little push on the brain to find something useful against a dragon. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  That's how Ginny found her. Surrounded by scrolls and books. Hands covered in ink. Lost on a table in the corner of the library. A typical Friday evening. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey Hermione, I thought Harry would be here with you?" Ginny had a confused look as she spoke. Had Fred been wrong to say that the two had gone to study together?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"He was but I kicked him out." said as she scrawled something on the parchment. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Why you and not Madam Pince kicked him out?" Ginny crossed her arms waiting for the answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Because" she closed her book "He wasn't helping me so I sent him to practice some spells in the meantime." Honestly, sometimes it seems like he doesn't care about his own safety. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Rude but understandable." The redhead could see a little reason for the frustration. Harry tends to be a little to procrastinator "I think you need some time out of whatever this is." said pointing to the stack of books and scrolls on the table. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't have time for a break Ginny." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's scientifically proven that you can't keep more than forty minutes of focus on the same subject without your brain starting to divert attention." There were interesting curiosities at the end of some Muggle magazines her dad collected. Ginny just loved it.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  Hermione couldn't argue with logic. And she knew this fact was true, but nothing stopped her from being stubborn.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Your point?" She narrows her eyes in Ginny's direction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Chat with me for a fifteen minutes break and I Will bring you a sandwich so you don't have to stop whatever this is." the best way to get a workaholic to agree on a break was by making them think they weren't going to waste more time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fine!" put her papers neatly aside before turning her attention back to the girl "About what you want to talk and remember you have a time limit." Hermione started to worry seeing the other girl's grin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, I don't know." </span>
  <em>
    <span>She does </span>
  </em>
  <span>" How about the fact that your letter friend is in the castle and so far and I don't even meet her yet?" </span>
  <em>
    <span>She really does</span>
  </em>
  <span> "Why are you keeping her all to yourself Hermione?" her voice almost sang with the amount of teasing involved. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> The smart witch, despite being used to her friend's teasing, cannot help but try to suppress a pink blush that was reached by her neck.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She has a tight schedule with all the advanced classes that she takes." Hermione mumble. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"But even with the tight schedule she always makes time for you, no?" she was very pleased that her friend's blush had hit her cheeks. It was time to talk seriously "I know that I am a mere spectator from outside but I believe that you should confess your feelings for her soon." her eyes found Hermione, extinct was the playful tone of her voice. This was the support friend.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I…" she swallowed "I really have to ?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't say you have to." Baby steps "I spend a lot of time in the background seeing relationships you know? And by the way, you talk about her It makes me almost sure that your feelings are mutual."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione had pondered that thought. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sometimes I believe they are." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   Another interesting curiosity: Being in the corner of the library on a Friday afternoon is not privacy synonymous.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur in all her elegance was stuck with her hand still holding the book about magic songs off the shelf. She didn't mean to overhear their conversation. Her ears were just trained to pay attention to Hermione's voice on any occasion. The blonde didn't hear much in her defense. But Hermione was talking about the possibility of confessing to someone and as much as she wanted to respect the girl's privacy she couldn't convince her feet to move. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So what are you afraid of? She doesn’t strike me as the type who would reject and stop talking to you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Perhaps the right occasion." The girl took a long breath "She is too special to me, I have to make It right." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't take too long, you tend to overthink things a little." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Just a little?" Hermione smile hearing this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm been nice." She gave the girl her tongue before adding "Honestly, I think you're going to do well, it's not like you're going to confess to Fleur Delacour." Ginny snort "Ok her Fanclub is annoying I give this to her,  but their Majesty doesn't even bother to answer."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She is not so bad," Hermione remembered the incident in the bathroom and how Fleur looked so kind to her. Ginny was giving her an incredulous look "Anyway It doesn't matter, she is certainly the last person I would confess to." </span>
  <em>
    <span>Even if she intrigues me a little.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh yeah, pretty girls are not your type right?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Right. A truffle, not my muffin." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur discreetly left the library with her book clinging to her body. Neither one of the two Gryffindor's saw her. Diana would find her friend later with a broken heart crying on her pillow. A phrase always repeating on her mind while sobbing. </span>
  <em>
    <span>she is certainly the last person I would confess to. </span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Sorry I have to put some drama. like the tags say they should just talk. Like really. Don't worry this will all settle at the end.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Say yes, please</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>  Standing alone in the tent, Fleur wondered what she had done wrong. Madam Pomfrey was seeing her slight burns, apparently, a sleeping dragon could still spitfire. Who knew dragons snore? But it wasn't the burns, let alone the tournament that invades her thoughts.</p><p> </p><p>  <em> Hermione.  </em></p><p> </p><p>  They hadn't spoken since Fleur had overheard the conversation with the redheaded friend in the library. Apparently getting ready to put a dragon to sleep took more of her free time than she expected. The rational part of her brain was using this excuse to try to convince herself. Fleur was not avoiding Hermione. The girl had Harry to worry about. They just didn't have the time.</p><p> </p><p>  Lying on the stretcher while looking at the ceiling was the only moment that the blonde started to process her feelings. This is what love looks like? It's so much warmth. How can a heart withstand so much heat? It burned more than the wounds on her legs. Love is this fire that burns acheless without seeing.</p><p> </p><p>  <em> I'm really in love with her </em> . Fleur sighed. <em> I'm in love. </em> It was not a moment of epiphany. It was more than evidence of a hypothesis and proof of a theory. It was finally a fact. <em> Her, my Hermione. I'm in love with Hermione.  </em></p><p> </p><p>  The points were announced and Fleur's placement had not been so bad. Second place. Just below Cedrico. Everything was fine. <em> It was not </em>. Maybe her heart had to get used to second place in more than one field.</p><p> </p><p>  Hermione was in the library again, but alone this time. After the first task and having ensured that Harry left alive she wanted some peace. So she went to her happy place. The only thing that could make the place more pleasant would be the presence of a blonde with glasses. Their meetings were short now, Fleur seemed to be keeping something to herself. Been more held. That worried the girl, but she would give the blonde space, if it's something that needs to be said she would give her time. She knew what it was like to keep something and still not be ready to say it. <em> I should…  </em></p><p> </p><p>  A cough.</p><p> </p><p>"Hermione?" a heavy voice with a strong accent interrupted her. </p><p> </p><p>"Viktor Krum." unlike the boy Hermione did not enunciate as a question. Everyone knew the champion. The doubt was how he knew her? </p><p> </p><p>"Yes that's me." he gave a nervous laugh. </p><p> </p><p>"Right... Do you want something with me?" </p><p> </p><p>"Oh, yes yes." scratching the top of his head he continued "I was wondering if you already had a date for the Yule Ball?" </p><p> </p><p>  <em> Oh yeah, Professor Dumbledore announced a ball, I had entirely forgotten. </em></p><p> </p><p>"I actually don't have a date for the ball." <em> should I invite Fleur? It looks like a great opportunity to confess. Wait, he's still talking. </em>"Sorry, could you repeat that please?" </p><p> </p><p>"I asked if you would like to be my date." seeing the girl's blank expression he added, "to the ball, my date to the ball I mean." </p><p> </p><p>  A famous Quidditch player was inviting her to the ball. Not even in the most absurd moments of her life could she imagine anything like this. There was only one answer she could give.</p><p> </p><p>"I'm flattered." she was not "Unfortunately I already plan to ask someone else so I will have to say no Viktor." despite the harsh words she was trying to make the rejection sound gentle as possible. </p><p> </p><p>  The boy looked sad with the answer, but a no was a no. He would respect that, his male pride was not that fragile.</p><p> </p><p>"It's ok, I had to try at least." his smile didn't reach his eyes "I hope you two have a great time." </p><p> </p><p>"Thanks, Viktor, I hope that anyone else you take have a great time with you too." </p><p> </p><p>  The player left after that trying to keep his head up. Hermione was going to go back to her books on the table when she was interrupted again.  </p><p> </p><p>"Was the one who just left Krum?" Ginny had to stop showing up behind people without making a noise. Hermione would have jumped out of her chair if she wasn't already used to it. </p><p> </p><p>"It was." </p><p> </p><p>"What did He want?" asked as she sits and placed her potions book on Hermione's table.</p><p> </p><p>"Nothing important, he just invited me to the Yule Ball." said in a disinterested tone. Ginny However…</p><p> </p><p>"He asks what!" the redhead shouted. </p><p> </p><p>"Shhh, I don't want Madam Pomfrey kicking us out." just thinking about getting thrown out of the library made her body shiver.</p><p> </p><p>"Sorry." lowered her voice "But Krum? Seriously? Man, what you even said to him?" she knew very well what the answer had been but still needed to ask. </p><p> </p><p>"I thanked and said no obviously." Who she think she is? A straight person? "Anyway, I already plan to invite someone else." </p><p> </p><p>"Oh, don't tell." the conversation had become more interesting "Finally found the courage to confess and what a romantic way to do it if not with the excuse of the long-awaited dance of the year." She was grinning " Teasing aside I'm happy you are doing this."</p><p> </p><p>"Thanks, Ginny, I think in the end your teasing help a little." </p><p> </p><p>"Well, If It helps that's mean I should tease you more."</p><p> </p><p>"Don't push It."  </p><p> </p><p>  Despite the decision, she only managed to meet Fleur briefly throughout the week. And since Hermione didn't want to leave until the last minute to invite the girl. It seemed kind of rude as if she thought no one else would invite her. Fleur is super cute who wouldn't want to invite her! No, she had to do it in the next opportunity. Which apparently was right now.  </p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Bang.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>  For the third and not the last time she was thrown to the ground by the person who held her affection. The only difference would be that this time it was in the castle halls on her way to the library.</p><p> </p><p>"Merde, Hermione are you ok?" </p><p> </p><p>"We should stop meeting like this." said in a flirtatious tone while helping the blonde to get up. </p><p> </p><p>"I'm clumsy unfortunately I can't promise." if Fleur noticed the flirt tone she didn't show "But I'll try to pay more attention, I don't like to hurt you in the process." </p><p> </p><p>"It's ok I don't mind as long as it's you." her tone was hopeful. As if being thrown on the floor was something she waited to happen again. It made Fleur's stomach turn.</p><p> </p><p>"Want my company to the library?" diverting attention was the best strategy for Fleur's weak heart. </p><p> </p><p>"Actually, can we talk first?" </p><p> </p><p>"Sure." Fleur had no idea what this conversation would be. It made her hands sweat.</p><p> </p><p>"Here, follow me." Hermione took the girl's hand and led her to an empty class. Making sure they were safe from prying eyes inside the room, she closed the door and continued. </p><p> </p><p>"So…" or tried to continue. </p><p> </p><p>Came on Granger, she is staring at you! Say something! I even had a plan… wait my plan of course! </p><p> </p><p>  Hermione began looking for something in her bag. When Fleur was starting to get confused the smart witch found what seemed to solve her nervousness problem. A folded piece of parchment. </p><p> </p><p>"I thought it would be more symbolic if I gave you a letter instead of just saying what I feel." She said, handing the parchment for the girl to read. </p><p> </p><p><em>What do you feel?</em> <em>It could be? </em></p><p> </p><p>  Fleur unfolded the letter delicately trying to hide the nervousness she felt. This was not the first letter she received but by far it was the most important and the blonde would treat it as such. Running her eyes over the delicate handwriting Fleur could hardly believe what she was reading.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Dear Fleur,  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> I should warn you beforehand this is not a usual letter. It's a love one.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Because yes Fleur I love you.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> I crave your company more than I ever crave another person's presence.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> When I first saw you I could only think that you were the cutest girl I had ever met. But I fall in love with you because you are so more too.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You have such a big heart.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Are very very clumsy.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Love books as much as I do, sometimes I think more than I.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Even if you are not afraid to show your opinion you are willing to listen to others.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> You eat the shell of the sandwich first.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Prefers pens to feathers for writing.  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Always try to convince me that coconut shampoo is great for the scalp. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> I could spend hours citing all the qualities that I see in you but I want to finish this letter one day.   </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> So Fleur If you accept my feelings. You would make me the happiest girl in the world and go to the Yule ball with me?  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> forever yours, </em>
</p><p>
  <em>  Hermione. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>  The confession was for her. Fleur couldn't believe it was for her. Here she was reading all the sweet words she wanted to hear. All the little things that made Hermione love her. And she couldn't stop crying. </p><p> </p><p>  The love of her life was confessing to the one part of her that couldn't take her to the dance. Because Fleur Delacour was a champion of the Triwizard tournament and should attend the ball. Not Fleur Isabelle. Fleur Delacour, the girl who according to Hermione had no chance of inviting to the ball. As much as she longed to say yes…</p><p> </p><p>"I can't." holding the letter to the body sobbed with the pain the words caused. </p><p> </p><p> Hermione had not yet registered the rejection. I was more concerned with the state of crying that the girl was entering. She was her friend first.</p><p> </p><p>"Fleur are you ok…" </p><p> </p><p>"I can't go with you to the ball, I'm not who you think! I'm a fucking lier unworthy of your love!" shouted what was almost her confession.</p><p> </p><p>"What are you talking about…" Fleur took off her glasses and untied her hair, making Hermione stop in the middle of the sentence. </p><p> </p><p>  Fleur is Fleur. Hermione stood there in shock, unable to do anything else. Rethinking all of their interactions, how had she not realized before that the two were the same person? </p><p> </p><p>"I'm sorry." was the last thing Fleur said before running out of the room. Not even hearing Hermione's cry pleading to wait.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>My favorite part was writing Hermione's love letter.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The tale of two idiots</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>   Three days.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Despite popular opinion to the contrary, Diana was incredibly patient. She has already waited four hours in the muggle subway just to be able to go to her sister's graduation party. She waited three months of Hiatus from Wizardcomic's to re-publish her favorite series. And except for the eventual curses, she never complained once. Diana is patient. But she had a limit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> So she decided to wait exactly three days after Fleur's breakdown to do something about It. Because the blonde was going to continue moping around without taking action on a situation that may well be resolved. Only needed the right ally for the issue. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So, let me see if I got it." despite reluctantly agreeing to talk to the Beauxbatons student Ginny was starting to see a wisp of hope " You want me to help you with this plan, which I loved by the way because you believe that our two morons need to get their heads together and just talk with each other?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes." her answer was short and to the point. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ok, I will help you." honestly if Diana hadn't shown up she was already ready to intervene "Just for curiosity how did you know I was the person who could help you?" Ginny had never exchanged a word with the Beauxbatons student, let alone Hermione. How she knew they were best friends was somehow curious.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Because." Diana sighed, she was already tired "Fleur doesn't shut up when she starts talking about Hermione and Hermione talks a lot about you so Fleur talks a lot about you so I knew exactly who to turn to." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ginny, seeing the girl's exhausted face, did not insist on the matter. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But what exactly was the brilliant plan your reader must be wondering. It is exactly what the author believes that many if not almost all of you wish to do with these two useless idiots. Lock the two of them in a room and make them talk about their feelings. The perfect plan. Shock therapy. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ginny's role was simply to convince Hermione that Professor Flitwick wanted to revise a new material on unusual applications of charms with her. After the emotional turmoil the girl had gone through, that would be a good distraction. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Little did she know that as she made her way to class, Hermione steps were being watched closely. When opening the door it was strange not to find the little man in the room. Stranger yet was the door abruptly closed. And locked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What the hell is going on?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, Hello Hermione my name is Diana is nice to finally meet you." a calm voice echoing behind the locked door spoked "Answering your question this is an intervention and the two of you will only leave this room when you resolve everything in a mature and civilized way." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <em>
    <span>Said the girl who locked two people in a classroom… Wait, two people? </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Slowly as if in a trance she looked better around the room. Facing a pair of blue eyes that Hermione didn't think she would find anymore. Fleur Delacour. Her Fleur was sitting on a chair in the middle of the room with an expression of marked irritation on her face. </span>
  <em>
    <span>She was pissed. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Diana!" The blonde shouted as she headed for the door "Open this door right now I don't have time to deal with your antics!" Yup, definitely pissed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, I'm not open It." the calm voice that had spoken to Hermione vanished and at her place was an equally pissed Diana "I had been patient enough, you have been more ridiculous than a boggart spell and I refuse to continue watching it happen and doing nothing about It." she paused for breathing a little "Look, I know you need your time to process things and whatever but you are walking on a self-destructive path and avoiding the problem! I'm only doing this because I know you can take It, you take more shit at school without even flinch a dame's muscle!" Even if Fleur could see her friend wasn't the one been difficult she wouldn't admit it out loud "You need a push, this is not a problem just talk with her ok." Despite lowering her voice Diana leaves no room for disagreement.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Silence filled the room. Fleur was still facing the door, her back was the only part Hermione could see. She was avoiding the problem, of course, she was. But even If she wanted to talk to Hermione was the other girl willing to talk? She was thrown into a room without her consent, what If...   A tentative touch on Fleur's shoulder broke her thoughts. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Let's sit on the chairs for that." To her surprise, Hermione didn't have a drop of anger or resentment in her voice. She was gentle. Even keeping an inviting smile while taking the older girl to sit. This was confusing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You are not mad with me?" Fleur does not even try to hide the vulnerability in her voice. Moving her hands in a nervous gesture the blonde could barely face the girl. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mad it's not the word I would use." She sighed "I'm more confused and sad, but not by discovering that you are well you, it's more because I know you were avoiding me than anything." assured the other girl.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur's stomach turned. The last thing she ever wanted was making the joy of her life sad. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I… I'm not good... dealing with my emotions. Using Diana's words I have a self-destructive way of dealing with them." I repressed them, was what she was trying to say "I'm not even sure how to start explaining myself to you." a dry laugh comes out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It would help If I make some questions and you go answering?" searched for the other girl's hand as saying I'm here. I'll hear you.  With the warmth now present in the palm of her hand Fleur nods in agreement "Ok, first, you even need glasses?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, I delighted them not to be prescription ones." if this was going to happen better it would be with total honesty "I use them to have peace." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Elaborate more please." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I have veela blood Hermione." After Rita Skeeter's article, this had become common knowledge "Even though I'm only a quarter it's still enough to give me a thrall. It affects everyone and it's incredibly frustrating." She growled "I'm not exactly the friendliest person in the world and that's part of the reason. I'm not a trophy that they can just try to win, I'm a person and I want to be treated with respect but most importantly sincerity." said this while searching for the girl's eyes. Fleur needed Hermione to understand the weight of her words "I'm cold and push people away because I want something genuine and the glasses and the ponytail was a way that I found after a lot of research that decreases the efficiency of my thrall. Is... the way I found to have a moment to be myself without needing a mask all the time." </span>
  <em>
    <span>You know the real me.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hermione wanted to hug the girl in front of her. She could see the years of pain and hurt on the veelas face. </span>
  <em>
    <span>You kept your heart so high protected in a tower that you didn't realize you couldn't see the sun anymore.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Never leaving Fleur's hand she continues asking. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I don't think your thrall affects me though." I don't go into a trance or talking nonsense like Ron. She pondered the question " How It's work?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The thrall may lure the eyes to see a desirable being. But actions are their burden to charge. Show the desire. Never control the body. For nothing can create love but a human heart." Fleur recited her grandmother's words "It's a veela saying, we don't… we can't create emotions we only show what the eyes want to see. It's a defense mechanism, for the most part, nobody attacks something that they think is beautiful. " </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If it's a defense mechanism why I'm not affected by It?" this was incredibly curious. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Some people are naturally resistant, it's rare but it's a possibility." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   Throughout the conversation, the blonde seemed to be getting more comfortable. Now that she realized that Hermione was receptive to listening her nervous tics decreased. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Difficult question time. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Why didn't you tell me who you were when I didn't recognize you?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was afraid." She bit her lip "You were one of the few people who wanted to meet me and when I tried to approach the first night here you had no reaction." quickly added." This is not me trying to get rid of the guilt, I should have said something when we bumped into the library." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And why you didn't?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Because… Because I'm a bitch, like they call me The Ice Queen for a reason. I was afraid… No, I was terrified that you would hate me if you found out. But I never wanted to continue to lie to you." </span>
  <em>
    <span>I love you </span>
  </em>
  <span>"I put the idea in my head that you had to like both parts of me before I could tell you the truth." She laughs "It's stupid when I said It out loud now, you are my Hermione you always want to know what's under the book before giving an opinion." Her eyes sparkle "I thought I made progress before the first task and I was ready to confess but I overheard a conversation you had in the library one afternoon saying that I would be the last person for whom you would confess and chicken out." She was ashamed of her cowardice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I was wrong, however." a look of confusion followed her "I did confess to you in the end and even now I wouldn't change a single word of that letter." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur's heart began to pound fast. This girl was looking at her in the eye, hearing all the excuses she gave for lying, and still felt the same. </span>
  <em>
    <span>This is a dream. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You still want me?" Hope. She feels hope. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione was grinning from ear to ear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Why wouldn't I? For everything you told me you are still my Fleur… that is If you would have me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I want." her response was instant "I wish nothing more than that, Merlin, Hermione I'm in love with you too." </span>
  <em>
    <span>You are my sunshine. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The class was once again silent. But not as uncomfortable as the first. It was the silence shared between two lovers who didn't need words to demonstrate what they felt. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We still need to talk." by the way Hermione spoke it didn't seem like she intended to continue talking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I know." was Fleur's only response. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Their faces began to slowly approach the other's space. Fleur gently took the girl's cheeks in her hands. Their noses were almost touching now. Hermione could feel the other girl's breath joining her own. Her heart beating like crazy with so much warmth. They only needed a few inches to finally… </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, good you two are making out." nobody had realized that Diana, concerned about the silence opened the door to spy on them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The two witches, very embarrassed about being interrupted, immediately move away. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Diana, my dear friend, go to hell." Fleur's words only had the effect of making the girl laugh.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If you are cursing again this means you are ok." clearing her throat she continued "But, if you have already solved everything, you need to get out, this room is not technically allowed for students at the moment." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you kicking us out of the very class you locked us in?" Hermione's eyebrows lift with the question. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I like this one Fleur." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Me too, very very much." turned her face, sweetly smiling, at the smart witch. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Stop using your french romance genes, we don't have time for this, move move." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They didn't mind being thrown out of the class. If their linked hands confirm anything they are just happy.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>First: I TOLD YOU GUYS THAT EVERYTHING WOULD BE FINE! Diana is always the voice of reason.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. When tree became two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>IT'S DATE TIME!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  Obviously, all their problems were not solved with a single conversation. They talked more after Diana meddled. Fleur was surprised at how well Hermione was handling the matter. She expected more anger, disappointment, or hurt. Not that Hermione didn't feel any pain. The girl was hurt for sure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   The thing is Hermione loves logic. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> In the three days after Fleur's big confession, Hermione had plenty of time to think for herself and to process her feelings. And the smart witch wanted to understand the blonde side of the story before drawing any definitive conclusions. The girl still hasn't managed to merge the image of the two identities into one. There were many unanswered questions. That's why she didn't mind being locked in the class. This was an opportunity.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Hermione loves logic. And people cannot separate logic from emotions. No, seriously they can't. It is neurologically impossible. It sounds like a paradoxical concept, but why does rationality have to be separated from the heart? They are not two distinct entities fighting to coexist. They are a linked part of an individual. Then, Hermione has to listen to her explanation so she could be able to understand the girl's heart. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Seeing the pain in those blue eyes, the fear of rejection, the desperation for a true connection. She did not deny her pain, only that the desire to connect with Fleur was greater. That's why she forgave her. They agreed in absolute honesty from then on. Even if a difficult question arises they would talk and deal with it. Together. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I have a question for you." Hermione announced while the two were cuddling in Fleur's room on the Beauxbatons carriage. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur slowly lifted her head from the comfort of Hermione's chest to look at the other girl's eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>"Say it mon Coeur." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"There will be a Hogsmeade visit this weekend." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"This is not  a question mon ange." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shh, I'm getting there." The brunette let her fingers run through Fleur's hair as she continued "Fleur Isabelle Delacour do you want to go on a date in Homsmeag with me?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I would love nothing more." Said while snuggling more on her lover embrace. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Interestingly, being the bold person who invites the other to date doesn't stop them from freaking out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ginny I have nothing to wear!" Hermione was in all her 15-year-old glory having a breakdown. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course you have." The redhead rolled her eyes "I strongly suggest the fifth outfit you threw in that pile on the left." She was forced to specify which one of the four piles of clothes on the floor. They study in a boarding school how the hell Hermione has so many clothes "I’m really happy that you guys solved everything. We need more queer couples at this school." a thought occurred to Ginny "Have you and Fleur discussed how open you guys will be about your relationship?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, we had." Picking the fifth outfit from the pile as suggested she said "Fleur's family is mostly made up of veelas, they see sexuality differently, gender is not a problem at all for them so she is pretty ok with been public and she really enjoys romantic displays of affection." Hermione's cheeks became a bright pink as she said the last part.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And you are ok with It too?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I never hide you know this." said as she straightened her pants "I came out to my family when I was thirteen" Hermione's Granny put a pride flag in the freezer door after that "You and Harry already know about Fleur so all the people I care about supporting me then I'm ok with been open and PDA in public." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What about Ron?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ron had been dense like a neutron star." She sighed "I should talk to him later." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You are right, talk with him later because you have a french beauty waiting for you." The redhead took a look at Hermione's outfit "Man, Fleur won't even know what hit her when she looks at you."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You really think I'm good? Maybe I should try again the…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't have time to doubt me, get out." She said that while kicking Hermione out of the room "I expect for details later." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The girl walked through the halls until she reached the castle gates stopping just a few steps away from what could only be described as a deity coming to Earth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur was wearing her glasses. She was standing at the gate, wearing an oversized sweater and a pom-pom hat-wearing her glasses. Hermione had to pinch herself to keep from passing out right there on the spot. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey Fleur." a timid voice was all that managed to get out of her mouth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  A pair of blue eyes covered by thick lenses turned immediately towards her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Bonjour mon Coeur." Fleur said as she approached the young girl to take her hand for a light kiss. Never say a Delacour doesn't know how to treat their lady "You look absolutely stunning." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You look cute, like really really cute, I didn't even know you had a pom-pom hat, this brings your cuteness to another level." Hermione momentarily worried that she hadn’t given the proper answer but if the size of the blonde's smile indicated anything, was she had nail It. The young witch cleared her throat "Care to join me for a walk first milady?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You know I can't say no to that really really cute face of yours." said while squeezing the girl's hand. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They walked together down the road to the village side by side, their fingers always intertwined. Fleur was grinning happily only to be in the girl's presence. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What have you planned for our romantic day out of the castle?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"As this is our first date, I couldn't help but plan the most cliche date ever, first I will impress you with my skills in choosing quills and proving their qualities to the miss pens are more practical." Hermione got a slight nudge for that "Second we are going to Honeydukes and you’re going to pretend you don’t see me buying licorice mugs for later, third we will go to a cafe that I previously booked a table and finally a romantic walk through the main square where we will appreciate the licorice mugs that you didn't see me buy." She looked at Fleur for approval. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"And will I be able to do all of this with you by my side? Sounds like a perfect day." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The two went to the quills and parchment shop first. And as promised Hermione prepared a list to compare the two writing objects. Fleur rolled her eyes at this but a tiny smile still could be seen as she watched the younger girl animatedly speaking. She bought a nice hawk quill to give Hermione as a gift while the other witch was inspecting the ink selection. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>   They passed on Honeydukes not long after that. With Fleur doing the show of pretending not to see Hermione buying the licorice mugs. She even bought Diana some chocolate frogs as a thank you for locking me gift. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  When they passed the door of the cafe it was already lunchtime. The two witches sat at a table near the window while deciding what to order from the menu.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"They have a great selection of sandwiches here." said Hermione while flipping through the pages.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I think I'll order the turkey with sun-dried tomatoes and an espresso." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Chicken sandwich with spinach and green tea for me." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur said to the waitress their order and they have left again in their own world. As pleasant as this day was, there was something in the back of Hermione's mind that she needed to ask.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur, you know I like you right?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well, I hope so, or else this would not be a good date." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, what I mean is you know I like you even without your glasses right?"  She wanted to assure the girl that this was true. Sure glasses Fleur was the one that is Hermione's type but she wouldn't date someone just because of her appearance. The youngest girl loves Fleur because she is Fleur.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I know this mon Coeur." She was grinning while brown eyes looked at her curiously "you made it very clear when you visited me in the carriage and scowled at almost all Beauxbatons students that even dared to think about giving us a second look." She loved her protective lion "But answering the unasked question I'm wearing them today simply because I don't want anyone to disturb this important day." Her thrall is annoying.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I will let it pass this time by being our first date." In favor of open communication, she still had to add "I know this is your way to be more comfortable in public so I will never press you to act differently, my intention is just to make it clear I love Fleur, glasses or no glasses." as she spoke Hermione reached over the table to take the young veela hand in her own. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The blonde was playing with the other girl's fingers. Those little comfort gestures will never tire her. Years driving away anyone who approached her made the older witch touch starved. Now that she had her warm source she didn't want, she couldn't stop herself from approaching and being consumed by it. How Fleur was so lucky her brave lion loves her back with the same intensity she will never know.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Maybe I also want to use them because I know you would drool when you saw me."  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You would use my weakness against me?" She was jokingly doing a betrayal expression. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"If it's to keep all your attention on me always." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Not that Hermione's mind. They finished lunch and went around walking in the central square of the village. While drinking butterbeer from the licorice mug the two witches could only think how perfect that first date had been.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Please Google the density of a neutron star.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. I love your hair</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Hermione was thinking about how to talk to Ron. She didn't want to make a big announcement about the thing. So the girl was just going to sit with him in the common room and go straight to the point. Or gay to the point. But the universe has other plans for their talk apparently. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Why are you two sitting depressed on the couch?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Because… shhh you, because they were both rejected by the girls they invited to the dance." Ginny to be fair was laughing at them equally.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well, I hope you two will learn the lesson of inviting someone sooner." despite saying both her jab was more directed at Ron. Hermione did not appreciate the comments the boy had been making about her colleagues' appearance "Who did you two even invite too?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Cho Chang" Harry replied in a timid voice "She is going with Cedrico." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sorry Harry, I know how much you want to go with her." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, why don't you feel sorry for me too?" Ron shouted. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No, you have been a pig so I'm not sorry for your rejection, who was the girl anyway?" Hermione has to thank the girl later. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  As soon as the question was asked Harry and Ginny started to stare at the wall while Ron became red as his hair. Ok, this reaction is awkward, who did he invite?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I… I try to invite Fleur to the ball." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione is not a jealous girlfriend. She knew very well that the blonde had been receiving invitations to the ball. And rejecting all of them. Even though she knew that the girl couldn't control the pang of irritation in her chest.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>"You try to invite Fleur Delacour to the ball?" Ok, she was pissed. Ginny trying to save her brother's life intervened. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"He basically yelled in the hall if she wanted to go to the dance with him, and ran off when she just stared at him." he caused a scene and is ashamed of it was what she tried to say. Unfortunately, all Hermione heard was that he yelled at her lady.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Well serves you right, I hope the next girl you invite will do much more than just staring at you for causing a scene." But Ron didn't register the bitterness in her voice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey Hermione, Neville is right, you are a girl." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Thanks for noticing." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You can go with one of us!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Neville, different from Ron, tried to invite Hermione before as friends. The witch kindly refused because the girl said she was already going with Fleur to the ball and suggested that since the boy just wanted a date as a friend he could invite Ginny instead. The redhead being a year younger could only go to the ball if someone older invited her. She thanked her friend later and everything was resolved. Unlike this proposal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"First I am not some kind of last resort for you, second I already have a date for the dance."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No you haven't, you just said that to get rid of Neville." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mate…" Harry failed to alleviate the situation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"For your information unlike you I had the descent to invite someone without shouting through the halls and she said yes!" Hermione said that and went angrily to her room. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wait, Hermione invited a girl?" Harry slapped his friend on the head after that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The next morning after having Ginny, Harry, and even Neville scold his ear Ron did not press on the subject. He was still trying to find out who Hermione had invited but the girl refused to give any information and no person who knew helped him to find out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The smart witch had better things to worry about. Like school work, help Harry in the tournament, and her cute girlfriend. Fleur, for her part, had only one problem to solve.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Diana, do you really think she will like my gift?"</em> Diana took a long breath hearing this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"For the last time"</em> she took the girl by the shoulders and looked at her as she spoke <em>"it took you three weeks doing this, it's so romantic and sweet that I think I developed diabetes just by looking at It and that girl loves you if you gave a rock with a ribbon called Bob she would love it."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I know I am exaggerating a little, but it seems that in our relationship I am never the person who takes the initiative."</em> this was bothering Fleur. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione was the one who offered her friendship. The one who suggested they meet at the castle. The one who confessed and invited her to the dance. It seemed that Fleur never dared to take the first step and was leaving everything on Hermione's back. Well not anymore. It was time to put aside her insecurities and show that the blonde was also committed to this relationship.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Look, I understand that you are scared and maybe giving a reason for your negative thoughts speak so my job here is to be the person who has to put sense in your head."</em> Time for the support friend to show  <em>"Hermione values hard work and effort and you put that a lot in your present, she will like it.</em>" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Thanks, Diana, I don't know what I would do without you."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Probably hit your head on the wall or make the terrible decision to dye your hair green."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Jerk."</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur waited for Hermione in the carriage common room. She was still angry with Ron so the girls decided to exchange their Christmas gifts at the Beauxbatons place. Most students had already become accustomed to the constant presence of the Gryffindor anyway. A knock on the door was enough to make Fleur run to answer it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Merry Christmas mon Coeur!" The blonde said as she gave the girl a big hug and filled her head with light kisses. Hermione loved every second of it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hello, my love, merry Christmas to you too" realizing she wasn't going to be released so soon she added "May I come in? It's cold outside." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Of course, come in." Despite releasing her from the embrace, Fleur still held the girl's hand while taking her lion to the fireplace "I have your present right here with me, want to open it?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, but I would like you to open my first." curiosity is greater than stubbornness and that's what made Fleur give in and open the little package. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  What was inside took her breath away. It was a necklace, a delicate silver chain connected to a swan-shaped crystal pendant. Hermione gave Fleur her patronum. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's a mood pendant, it turns blue every time you are feeling down. I wanted to give you this so that you will always have a happy memory around you." I wish your happiness above all things was what Hermione trying to say. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur almost cried with happiness.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Can you help me to put it on?" She said while turning her back on Hermione. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The smart witch moved Fleur's blond hair to the side and closed the pendant. Hugging her girlfriend from behind she asked with her mouth very close to the other girl's ear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"So do you like It?" her tone was flirtatious.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'll never take it off my neck." Fleur felt the sweet sensation of Hermione's lips descending under her neck "But as much as I want to show you how much I loved the gift you still need to open mine." The blonde said in a hushed tone. She had to resist the temptation of kissing the hell out Hermione for the greater good.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's fine, we can come back to that later. Give me my present." Fleur took out a square package from behind the couch and hand it to Hermione. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She did not stop being nervous when the brunette tore the paper. Hermione stared at the object in front of her, it was a book? No, a diary maybe? The cover was a delicate blue, with a small lock on the side.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Did you give me a diary?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nope, I was inspired by Muggle technology to do that, here let me show you." Fleur took the gift from Hermione's hand and opened it on a random page. "The yellow pages act as a search engine, I was able to connect with the main book collections available around the world. If you have any doubts just write the question here and it points you to the book that has the answer or if you want to check it directly the pages with the information appeared for you too." Fleur was getting excited while explaining but now came the part that made her apprehensive "The white pages are for correspondence, it works as an email, it saves the old messages in the memory and you can send new ones without worrying about ending the pages." She took a breath "I have a notebook that receives and sends the messages, so that way we can continue sending letters to each other or quick notes during the day more easily when the tournament is over and I am no longer around the whole time." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  That was the way Fleur found to show that this relationship was also important to her. A promise that she wanted the relationship to last a long time. Even from a distance, Fleur did not want to part the connection with her precious lion. She wants the whole package, meeting someone, spending time with the person, learning new things about It other every day. Love. This gift was a promise of love. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The blonde barely finished explaining the gift before being attacked by a bear hug from Hermione. Between tearful happy muffled sighs of I love you, Christmas morning couldn't be better for both. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  After lunchtime, the girls spent a few hours cuddling on the couch before saying goodbye so they both could get ready for the ball at night. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  Diana, wearing a new silver scarf courtesy of Hermione, was helping Fleur with her hair. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I know you want to look pretty and whatever but you don't think it's a little over the top four hours of hair hydration and facial mask?"</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I didn't judge you when you dragged me between stores for three hours to choose a dress and give up in the middle to buy a suit instead."</em> Fleur raised a perfect eyebrow retracing the comment about her appearance care.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"Point taken, want help with makeup later? I want to test a new shade of lipstick on you." </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"You know I will." </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  After the two finished getting ready, they headed for the Great Hall entrance gate. Fleur, being one of the champions, was forced to open the ball with the other participants and couldn't afford to be late. She found a nervous Harry waiting with a girl in a colorful sari beside him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hello Harry, did you happen to see my date?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The few times they interacted before Fleur started dating Hermione were not the most friendly. He believed that she was the Ice Queen before. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But the boy was one of the brunette's best friends so after all the discovery of Fleur being Hermione's friend letter they both came to an agreement to be at least cordial until they got to know each other better and could build a friendship. It was a beginning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hello Fleur, I didn’t see her for the rest of the day apart from this morning."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You think…" she was interrupted before finishing her question by a stunned Parvati.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh Merlin, she looks beautiful!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The blonde slowly turned her head to contemplate who had caused this reaction in the girl. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Immediately Fleur's breath got stuck in her lugs. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Coming down the stairs was the most divine creature of all time. Her Hermione was wearing a blue dress that matched the blonde perfectly.  She had done something with her hair, now her difficult-to-tame curls were beautifully defined and falling over her shoulders. She looks beautiful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  As if in a trance, Fleur headed toward her girlfriend. A smile never leaving her lips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I fear that I have no appropriate words to express how splendid you are today mon amour." Fleur said as she took the girl's hand and kissed her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You don't look bad yourself, miss Delacour." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They would have been lost in each other's eyes for the rest of the night if Professor Mcgonagall had not appeared to put the champions in the front row. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They walked through the hall and many eyes fell on the two witches. Either because the Beauxbatons champion had brought a girl to the ball or out of envy that the most intelligent witch at Hogwarts had gotten the most desired girl in the castle as a date didn't matter. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Because during the entire entrance and the dinner that followed during the night our two girls could only pay attention to each other's orbit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  During the opening dance, Fleur offered to led and they danced until their feet started to hurt.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Want to stop for a while to rest mon Coeur?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The two stopped to talk with the boys for a while. Ron, despite being full of jealousy, was unable to speak a word against the two thanks to the constant presence of Fleur thrall. Who even knew it would come in handy. The two witches abandoned them later to go to the garden and enjoy the night view.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Did you like the dance mon ange?" Fleur said as she brushed a hair off the other girl's face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I would like any dance as long as I can be by your side." Hermione laying her cheek on the blonde's hand replied "But tonight was perfect anyway." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah?" Fleur leaned closer to her girlfriend's body. Never breaking eye contact the brunette confirmed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Very much." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The kiss that took place in the moonlight was the best way to end their day.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>One of the things that always bothered me was that I never saw a fic that didn't straighten Hemione's hair. Curly hair is beautiful and deserves to be appreciated.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. What she misses the most</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  Kissing was never something that Hermione gave a lot of importance to before. Connecting that part of the skin with another person always seemed nice and whatever but that's It. Kissing Fleur, however, was another experience. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The girl's lips were so soft it was like being kissed by an angel. Hermione lost her breath just looking at them. And the warmth. Even the slightest brush of those lips was able to cause a wave of heat throughout Hermione's body. They couldn't keep their hands off each other after the first contact. It was like being consumed in the warm embrace of love. It was amazing. It was the thing she would rather be doing right now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Harry, or as the witch was calling him the boy who deserved a beating for not finding out what the egg did before the last minute, was stealing one of the few moments she still had free. In his defense, she offered to help him find a way to survive underwater. Harry did not even deny he deserved a slap. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"This is useless." Ron said as closing his book with a bang "Why would you want to let your nose hair grow?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You could try to transfigure a stone into diving equipment at that point." Hermione was been sarcastic given the boy's difficulty in turning pins into buttons.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione's girlfriend could at least have offered help," Ron muttered bitterly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Although the redhead had no problem with his friend's sexuality, he had been making these comments since the Yule Ball ended. Hermione had the theory that he was just incredibly jealous that she had taken Fleur to the dance instead of him. As the comments were mostly harmless and she frankly had more to worry about, like keeping Harry alive, the girl didn't even bother to reply.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We will find something, we just need more material." Hermione even tried to use Fleur's gift to speed the search a little and ended up finding some enchantment books that might be useful.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Unfortunately, before she could catch them Fred and George appeared looking for Ron and Hermione. This should certainly not lead to anything related to the challenge… right? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The next morning at Great Hall Fleur was a nervous wreck. Hermione did not reply to the message the blonde sent overnight. She knew that the girl was helping Harry so Fleur was trying not to take the lack of reply personally. However, some twisted feeling in the back of her mind was telling her that there was something wrong with all of this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur, fuck, stop swinging your leg you will end up opening a hole in the ground if you continue this shit." Diana, despite being very patient, had not had her coffee yet and was very easily irritable. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sorry, I'm strangely agitated today." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Strangely? Girl you are going to swim in a cold lake full of strange creatures for an hour and have to regain your crappy treasure." She took a sip of coffee "I think you are feeling quite normal in the current circumstances." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur bit her lip. The blonde knew Diana was right, but she was also sure it wasn't nervousness what she felt. Nervousness didn't explain the weird sensation in the older girl's chest as if pulling out of the corridors towards something. It was almost like a calling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Resisting and staying seated until the time of the challenge was making Fleur sweat cold, releasing energy that her body could barely contain. What the hell was even happening with her? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fortunately, Madame Maxime appeared to take her where the challenge would take place. Despite the turmoil subside with the action, just moving towards the black lake seemed to increase the pull sensation even more. What the hell? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She was so lost inside her mind that Fleur hardly noticed that Harry had arrived breathless just in the nick of time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yeah… Fleur…" The boy needs to exercise more. wait, isn't he part of the quidditch team? "Did you happen to see Hermione or maybe Ron around the castle? I haven't seen them since last night." Never in Fleur's life had a sentence made her blood run cold like the one the boy had said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Harry hasn't seen his friends since last night. Hermione didn't reply to her message and it was nowhere in sight in the stands. The blonde was going to have to retrieve a treasure from the lake. Her most precious treasure. Her… </span>
  <em>
    <span>No! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Rage.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Her body was rapidly being consumed by a murderous rage. Breathing at the speed of a golden snitch she looks intently at the lake. Her blue eyes were nonexistent now, giving way to two silver spheres. Gone was the girl, the creature had finally taken control. </span>
  <em>
    <span>You must find her!</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"F-Fleur why are you releasing feathers?" Harry did not receive an answer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She would have been disqualified for jumping into the lake had the start signal not sounded at that exact time. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Find her! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> There is a saying among the half veelas, that if the jurors had made the minimum amount of research it would explain why it was a very stupid idea to use each other's loved ones as the treasure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <em>
    <span>Diluted blood can gains strength when threatened. Fury may change the eyes. But feathers are only born when you hear the soul calling.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  There are few things that would stop a veela in a state of fury. Breathing underwater was not one of them. Which was excellent news as Fleur did not mind playing the bubblehead spell on herself. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She let herself be carried away by the pulling as traveled the lake at superhuman speed. The ferocity that she was found could be felt miles away by the other creatures, who did not dare to get in her way. </span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  The merpeople almost abandoned their posts when they saw the silver eyes approaching. The chief of the tribe briefly cursed Dumbledore. How did no one warn him that a veela was one of the champions? Oh, and apparently they were keeping her mate with them. Well… shit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p><em><span>"Cousin, we will not get in the way of your heart. Your treasure sleeps and wakes up as they breathe fresh air again."</span></em><span> If the chief did not ensure that Fleur's treasure was not in any real danger they hardly knew what could happen.</span> <span>A furious veela was no play. </span></p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Luckily for them, the only thing she wanted was to free Hermione. Fleur tore the chain with her long talons like It was made of paper. Grunting to anyone who dared approach she took the girl back to the surface with her. If merpeople sweat they would be soaked, but they live in the water so they are always soaked... The author wasted an opportunity of analogy to make that joke and refuse to edit. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The first thing Hermione saw when she started breathing again was feathers. Several and several amounts of feathers. Her brown eyes met silver and her world stopped. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I called for you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I answered I will always answer. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  When Hermione was taken by a now very persistent half morphed creature to Madam Pomfrey to receive blankets and be inspected for injures the girl couldn't help thinking that she had some sort of conversation with Fleur just now. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Devoid of wings and never leaving Hermione's side, the blonde could barely understand what had just happened. At least her girlfriend didn't freak out about seeing her transformed. How the brunette managed to stay so calm was a mystery. Not even Madame Maxime was trying to get close to Fleur while her eyes didn't return to normal, and the woman is half-giant and the Headmaster of a magical school. But Hermione was holding her hand with talons still present while trying to hold a calming conversation. As if she just simply knew what Fleur needed to calm down when the blonde herself had no idea.   </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  One thing was certain, Fleur would have to write to her grandmother as soon as possible.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. How a soul could choose?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The quarter veela received the highest score from the judges just like Harry. The boy saved both Ron and Krum's treasure, a Hufflepuff girl that he had taken to the ball. The seeker was attacked earlier and ended up being unable to rescue her. Harry was rewarded for his altruism and Fleur for being both the first to rescue and not over the time limit. The blonde was in front of the other competitors now. But that didn't take the bitter taste of victory out of her mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  For the first time in her life, people were avoiding Fleur. Not that she cared, it was even refreshing to be ignored instead of constantly irritated by people. After the second task, everyone witnessed her transformation, and if there was one thing that even the Slytherin could understand, it was you don't bother an angry veela. At all, like never. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Even more after the suspicious article in the Daily Prophet that described the champion as a ferocious beast that needed to be contained. Needless to say, Fleur's correspondence was being monitored after that. This made her most irritated and wanting to curse Rita Skeeter for the rest of the woman's life because now her grandmother's letter was taking too long to arrive.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She needed that answer and quick. Because despite being a quarter veela and having great participation in this part of the folk culture there was a lot that the girl didn’t know, especially given the fact that she was primarily socialized in the witch community. The struggles of having more than one inheritance are real. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Not understanding what had happened to her made the blonde nervous. It was almost like Fleur had a vague idea of what was going on but her mind blocked the response from appearing. It wasn't just her own questions that the blonde had to answer. As patient and understanding as her girlfriend was, she knew that Hermione had them too. She was waiting for Fleur. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"You know to someone who is in the first place in the tournament you look more emotionally constipated every day."</em> Diana did not soften her words even after receiving a murderous look in response. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"This wait is just making me anxious."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"So it's great that I came here to inform you that Madame Maxime just finished checking your mail and has a safety package with your name on it waiting in the carriage."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Why wasn't that the first thing you said to me?"</em> Fleur immediately shoved her books into her bag and ran out of the Great hall towards the carriage. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"And miss the opportunity to make fun of you? Never."</em> Diana shouted at the girl's back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Arriving at the Beauxbatons carriage Fleur went straight to her room. Waiting at the girl's desk was a small rectangular package with a letter addressed to her. The message from her grandmother was short and puzzled.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>   "If you can read this book, send me a patronum after your conversation." - With love, Granny </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <em>
    <span>Granny, why are you always like this?</span>
  </em>
  <span> What kind of encrypted message was that? Well, she hoped at least this book would provide better answers. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Unwrapping the package found a very thin, worn book. Fleur could feel the ancient magic that radiated from it with a simple brush of her fingertips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>  Veelas and souls bond; an explanatory guide by Zorah G. Argh</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Reading the title she took a long breath and dives deep into the book pages.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione received a message from her girlfriend per her book asking to meet in the castle's garden. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The girl was worried, not out of fear as the other students now seemed to have acquired. She didn't know how to explain it but Fleur's transformation did not cause her any discomfort. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  On the contrary. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  When the brunette looked into those silver eyes it was like finally finding the piece of herself she was desperately searching for. Like the world made sense again. She knew. Simply just knew that nothing wrong would happen while Fleur was there. So no dating a creature was not the thing worrying Hermione as the Daily Prophet was insisting on pointing out.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>  What worried her was the emotional turmoil her lover was in. Hermione never saw the blonde so nervous before, so scared of herself. While waiting for Fleur's grandmother's letter tried to help in the way she knew best. By researching. Unfortunately, the library had failed to help in the search for a satisfactory explanation.  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Nothing. Simply no book had the answer or a knowledge indication of what had happened at the lake. It was frustrating not to be able to provide the comfort that Fleur needed. Not that it stopped her from trying, Hermione will always try for her loved ones. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But now was not the time to hide in the library the veela needed to talk to her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The garden, unlike the greenhouse and the forest, was a very pleasant part of the castle. It was there that Fleur and Hermione spent part of the night, surrounded by moonlight, looking at the stars after the dance. It was a place of happy memories, so it was the best place chosen for their conversation. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey Fleur." a hesitant voice came from Hermione's mouth. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Not wanting to imply that the conversation would be a bad thing Fleur crossed the space between the two took Hermione's cheeks in her hands and give the girl a fierce open mouth kiss. It took less than a second for the younger witch to relax and melt into her girlfriend's sweet lips. The heat that radiated from their joined bodies was like a protective aura banishing any thought of doubt that might exist. She felt her hands drawing Fleur vests bringing their bodies closer and closer. They could spend hours connected like that, but they had to talk. Drawing circles on Hermione's back the blonde broke the kiss. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I hope this helps to understand that this will not be a bad conversation mon Coeur." the blonde whispered breathlessly in Hermione's ear.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Still disoriented from the kiss the other girl just nodded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Came with me, let's sit on the bench." With their joined hands they sat on the bench next to each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"My grandmother reply."  looking into the brown eyes she loved continued "She sends me a book, that explained what happened to me at the lake."</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What the book said?" Hermione gave the girl's hand an encouraging squeeze.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Taking a deep breath Fleur begins her explanation.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The book is called veelas and souls bond, it is a magical antiquity within the veela community and is always passed on whenever someone in the family encounters..  their mate." Fleur was direct to the point, she wouldn't hide anything, not after promising honesty "We are mates, Hermione our souls resonated together that day we are now bonded to each other." She looked directly into the girl's brown eyes while saying this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Ok, that was a lot of information in the same sentence and left more questions to be asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We are mates, how that even works?" Her tone was curious and even hopeful. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Veelas has a peculiar ability, the thrall is not just a defense mechanism like I thought." she laughed "Apparently it serves to assist in the search for a mate too. Souls sing you know? Like birds they sing and wait to be heard by their peers, my thrall allows me to hear the song much more intensely than an ordinary human." She needed Hermione to understand the seriousness of what she was talking about "It’s not like we’re destined for each other by a cosmic force. That's not how love works, it’s a choice. In the lake, your soul called for me and my soul answered because I chose you too." </span>
  <em>
    <span>We chose each other, our souls connected because they chose to love each other together.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's why you turned?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, anger can make me gain some veela traits but a complete transformation for someone with diluted blood like me is only possible when you answer the call of your mate." her eyes were starting to fill with water, a traitor tear trickled down Fleur's cheek.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey, hey Fleur love why are you crying?" Hermione held her cheek and wiped the tear away with her thumb. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm happy, I'm just really happy it's you my soul chose. I never felt this way in my life about anyone, I love you so much Hermione, but I'm also afraid this be too much in such a short time of our relationship." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Even if they were connected, the mind could still reject the idea of forming a bond. That was simply terrifying.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's not too much." The brunette stared at her firmly ensuring that was true "I feel it too, at the lake I looked at you and I just felt deep down that I had found my other part. We can talk about the logistics of this later Because yes Fleur I want to go further in this relationship with you, your soul answered my call, I called you not any other soul. I called you because that's where my heart wants to be and…" Hermione was cut off by a pair of lips that took her breath away. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I want you. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I'm here, I will never leave your side.</span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The only reason Soulmates is not a tag was because I didn't want to give spoilers :p</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. The moon is jealous of you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>This time the judges were kind enough to inform the champions about the last challenge. A maze. It seems that the level of dangerous creatures they will have to face just keeps rising. There must have been a safety law that prevented them from doing such absurd tasks, although the favorite sport in England was Quidditch… yup they clearly don't care about security at all.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Although the last challenge was approaching Fleur was worrying very little about it. Not because she was the first placed and was overconfident. She wasn't. The reason for worrying so little was simply for the simplest and most stressful reason of all. The girl needed to graduate. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  It seems that everyone forgot while judging her for being chosen champion, but the blonde was in her last year and had to pass exams if she wanted a chance to get a decent job. Her career depended on it, her future with Hermione depended on it. Worrying about personal safety was the last of her problems. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Can shouting in the shower because of stress be considered a breakdown? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fortunately, she had the best girlfriend in the world. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur I hope you understand that I love you when I say this but woman you are all tight." That was the first thing Hermione noticed while cuddling in Fleur's room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I've been under a lot of stress lately." Fleur said as she buried her face in the brunette's neck even more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Is there anything I can do to help?" The girl asked sweetly as she ran her fingers over her girlfriend's blond curls.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You already help just by being here, honestly this is the calmest moment I have in days." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Biting her lip Hermione decided that due to the current circumstances it would be appropriate to make a... proposal. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I have a counteroffer, you can say no by the way." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm listening." said in a sleepy voice. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I could give you a massage." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur immediately woke up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"A massage?" her voice almost crack saying that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I see you liked my suggestion." Hermione was grinning.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  
  <em>
    <span>You have no idea how much and you haven't even touched me yet! </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Will Diana take long to come back?" It was a pertinent question given that Diana was Fleur's roommate.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  What? Did you all think that just because there is magic to increase rooms they would not make students share bedrooms? Naivety at the very least.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She's been fixing a suit, believe me, she won't be back before dinner time." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"She really likes styling clothes." Hermione headed for the bathroom "Would you have any body lotion I can use?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes, in the lower cabin the green tube." Fleur straightened up on the bed "Diana wants to become a stylist when she graduates, dreams of creating a more modern witch clothing line, she likes to mix muggle fashion with that." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"That's good to hear, she looks very passionate about it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione appeared back in the room holding the lotion. Setting the bottle on the desk, she turned her back on Fleur and said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Ok, Take off your shirt and lie on your back please." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You know, I don't mind if you take a look at me." </span>
  <em>
    <span>I would actually love it if you look.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Nope, just lie your back love." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>What a shame. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur obeyed the command. Hermione rubbed some of the lotion on her hands and started rubbing the blonde shoulders.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wow, you're tenser than I thought." said while doing pressure on a knot. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur held back a moan of satisfaction. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck, that's good. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Where did you learn to do that?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"My grandmother has a lot of back pain." replied while taking more lotion "I always offered to massage on her bad days, It was nice she usually read to me while I worked." applying pressure with the tip of her elbow, she managed to get a groan from Fleur.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Sorry," she said, embarrassed to let the sound out.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Don't be, it’s a body natural reaction and there’s just me here." Even though she couldn't see her girlfriend's face, Fleur could feel the smug grin directly at her "You don’t need to hold love, I want to hear you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  With permission so kindly granted, Fleur had no reason to restrain herself anymore. With each knot, Hermione undid it seemed that the blonde moaned louder and louder. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Merlin, this is heaven. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Want to talk about what has been stressing you out?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Wasn't… Right there please... that supposed to help me relax?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Venting is a way to relieve the soul." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hum… well incredibly it is not the tournament that has occupied my head." the blonde started "I just want to finish my exams and graduate soon." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"What would you like to do after finishing school?" her voice followed the smooth movements of her hands.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Honestly? I have a strange interest in curses… Fuck." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, I could notice it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Shut up… Hum... Anyway, I love learning how they work and handle them properly, I have been thinking about looking for a job in the Cursebreaker area for a while." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It is a very interesting field, there is always something new to learn." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Yes… Yes, It is." Fleur bit her lip "I've been thinking about sending some applications to some places here in London." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hermione stopped moving. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Would you move to London?" Her voice was almost a whisper.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur turned, she put her hand delicately on the girl's cheek. Looking at hopeful brown eyes she said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I already told you I want a future with you, I know those distance relationships are difficult but I thought it wouldn't hurt to stay in the same country at least." removing a hair from Hermione's face she continued "Besides, it's a great opportunity for me to practice my English more." her smile was genuinely happy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  She was embraced shortly after uttering those words. Her arms closed holding Hermione, as inhaled the scent of her shampoo quick murmurs of I love you could be headed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>  Did you think that I would abandon you? You are my sunshine. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Hey Fleur, do you think you can try on this vest for… What the fuck! My poor eyes! put a sock on the door next time your jerk!"</em> Diana shouted and left with a bang. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  It took that interruption to make Hermione realize something very important that she had neglected. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur... you are naked." Okay, not that she didn't know that before but now she could see the entire front of the blonde. It was very distracting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Do you want me to put my shirt back on?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Taking a last look and looking for any signs of discomfort from the veela and finding none she said. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"No need, can you pass me your sock please?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you sure?" She said as she took off her sock and handed it to Hermione "We don't need to rush mon amour." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Believe, you're not rushing me but If you don't want to..." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I want!" Fleur coughed "I would be extremely happy to share this moment with you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Good." She put the sock outside the door "Good, we agree, guaranteed consent on both parts to continue." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur couldn't contain her smile. </span>
  <em>
    <span>She is so cute.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I love you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I love you more." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Prove it." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They did not reach a consensus after that, but one thing was certain these two loved each other.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Poor Diana.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. You are my sunshine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>  Fleur didn't have much free time. Of course, due to the third task, the blonde had the opportunity to take her exams before the other students. But that just ended up consuming her entire agenda and turning her into a soulless machine powered by coffee. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> Hermione had to persuade her with kisses to at least have some tea before bed to help with the stress. It helped, but Fleur wasn't going to admit it. The blonde still thought tea tasted like dirty water no matter how much sugar she put in.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Diana, who didn't care much about the results of her exams anyway, spent much of her time finishing her portfolio of clothing models and dueling with Fleur. There is always a motherfucker peaceful student in the chaos of exams. Fleur wanted to strangle as much as to thank her friend for her help. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Sitting in the Great hall while waiting to be called to the last task she could only think that wanted all of this to end soon. Maybe if she pouted a little bit, she could get Hermione to give her another massage after the task. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"You are making that face again."</em> Diana said monotonously. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"What face?"</em> Fleur, who had barely started eating her toast asked confused. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"The face you make every time you think something naughty about Hermione."</em> Diana didn't even take her eyes off her oatmeal while said that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  If Fleur had been drinking a juice she would have to spit It out with the answer. Which would be funny, but luckily her reaction to turning red like a tomato with her mouth open like a fish was also hilarious. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I don't think naughty things in the middle of breakfast."</em> She said in a low muffled voice.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Do you think about it after eating then? Well, at least the brain already has fuel to imagine whatever you two do in your spare time."</em> </span>
  <em>
    <span>Why I'm even your friend again?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    
  </em>
  <span>  Fleur didn't have much time to give a rude answer back professor Mcgonagall came to pick her up to go and receive her family. She met Harry along the way. The boy looked nervous and uncomfortable. It could be said by the constant tic of adjusting his glasses. Fleur only noticed because she had the same tick. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Are you ok Harry?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, Hi Fleur." He sighed "I'm just not sure who I'll find waiting for me, I don't exactly have the most receptive family." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Her heart broke after hearing that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"You can stay with us If you want, I'm sure my parents won't mind." The boy gave her an odd smile.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I appreciate the offer but I think Hermione will kill me if I get introduced to your family before her." He laughed trying to release the mood.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The offer remains." said while opening the door. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  It turned out that Harry did have a receptive family waiting for him on the other side. The Weasleys embraced him as soon as they saw him. Fleur was happy for the boy.  He looked so light along with the pair of red hair nearby. Wait that is Bill right? </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ginny commented that one of her older brothers worked at the bank and judging by the long hair and earplugs that were the brother. Fleur saved this information for later, it would be great for networking.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Fleur dear, we are so proud of your tournament performance so far I just wish your grandmother could be here to see."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"It's ok Mom, she sent me a letter wishing me luck this morning." </em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"So…"</em> Oh no, Fleur knew that look <em>"We congratulate you already, asked about your life and school I think now you just need to introduce us to your so famous girlfriend." </em></span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"Your father is absolutely right!"</em> They sure rehearsed that <em>"Show us the girl who managed to get you to write a five-page letter just mumbling about how great she is."</em> </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Oh yeah, the letter... it is perhaps not the best move give ammunition to your mother to tease you.  In her defense, what you guys even wanted her to do? Hermione was wonderful and when Fleur started citing the girl qualities she couldn't shut up. But maybe five pages had gone too far, the blonde had lesser homework than that.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"I think she is at the Great Hall now."</em> Fleur hoped she wasn't.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span><em>"And what are we still doing here then? chop-chop."</em> Her mother started walking in front of the castle halls that she was not familiar with at all. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It would be a long day. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione, unaware that she was being hunted, returned carefree from the library. Apparently, it was never too late to find any spells that would help Harry in the tournament. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Ron had started making fun of the girl saying that she was not giving priority to her girlfriend. Hermione merely said that Fleur was two years more experienced and did not request her help in the tournament, the girls were the best in the class for a reason for Merlin's sake. He only shut up after receiving a murderous look from Ginny.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Crossing the Great Hall gate, Hermione came across a pair of redheads she hadn't expected.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hey Mrs. Weasley." it was a tentative greeting. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  After all the articles by Rita Skeeter Hermione knew that the matriarch was not having a positive opinion about her. Why the woman believed she was dating Harry but didn't believe Harry had gone crazy with fame was a mystery.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>"Hello Hermione." her tone was cold and distant.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Seeing her friend clear discomfort Harry only did the right thing.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hum, Mrs. Weasley you know that what they said in the paper is a lie, Hermione is not my girlfriend." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Oh, of course, I know that dear." She didn't but became much warmer with Hermione after that. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Honestly the things they are saying are absurd, they even invented that Hermione was basically engaged to one of the participants. What was her name again? Ah yes, the Delacour girl." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Okay, Hermione didn't know what asshole Rita Skeeter had taken that shit from. Even though this time it was technically true given the fact that they were mates... She shouldn't be spreading personal information like that! Hermione hadn't even bought a ring yet!</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Actually Mrs. Weasley about that…" She didn't have time to finish when she was interrupted by a hug, almost a push from behind. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Despite the blond hair, she knew that the short being was not her girlfriend. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Gabrielle! I'm so sorry Hermione, she forgets how to behave when she's excited." Gabrielle was reluctantly pulled aside by Fleur "She really wanted to meet you." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"It's fine love." Patting the small girl on the head, Hermione approached and gave Fleur a peck on the lips. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Mrs. Weasley gasps loudly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione I can't believe you are really engaged!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Who is engage?" Fleur's mother asked as coming from behind with Fleur's father. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Well... fuck.</span>
  </em>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span> After resolving the misunderstanding the conversation was very pleasant. Apolline Delacour after seeing how her daughter interacted with Hermione seemed incredibly satisfied and immediately approved the relationship between the two. Which in reality only meant that Fleur had to hear her mother tell all of her embarrassing stories to her girlfriend. She was so happy that they weren't at home and there was no way to show her baby pictures. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Thank's Merlin she was called to enter the maze, Fleur didn’t know how much more she would take without turning into a red pile of mortification. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The judges explained the rules and security measures. That wasn't very good, but this whole tournament was a mess so it was already expected. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Having the advantage of entering first, she took the opportunity to try to determine the pattern of the maze. Many dead ends and dangerous creatures lurking. Great, just fucking great. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Looking at the bush walls and thinking about how much time would have passed, she noticed something curious. It was a shoe forgotten on the floor. Well, if it had a shoe, someone had come by before. With a quick scan of the area, she barely paid attention to where she stepped and ended up hitting a little hill and falling. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Ouch! Merde, why I keep doing this? </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Raising her head from the mud Fleur could only thank that no one had seen it. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Was that Krum left petrified on the ground?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur barely had time to get up when the world was consumed by darkness. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione was watching from the stands with the Weasley and Delacour family. Which consisted of looking at the entrance to the maze for hours until something happened. Really who had this idea?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But it was not the constant boredom that was distressing the girl. She could feel her heart beating in the throat, hands sweating and had an almost uncontrollable desire to run away, almost like a pulling. Something was wrong. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione dear are you ok?" a worried Mrs. Weasley asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I… I…" she swallowed "Don't… know." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The girl was shaking, the agitation was not allowing her to speak properly. And then red sparks were seen in the sky. Hermione has lost all coherent thought.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Find her. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    
  </em>
  <span>She ran from the stands towards the maze and only stops halfway because Ginny and Ron had been holding her by the wrists. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione came dow… " Ron had to dodge a kick "Fuck, how you are so strong?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I need to get in there!" her friends barely recognized her voice, It barely looked human.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mione came the fuck down!" Ginny shouted.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  But she only stopped fighting for a second when saw the teachers bringing two bodies out of the maze. Ron and Ginny froze watching the scene which allowed her to get free and run towards the petrified blue eyes that called her. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur!" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Her hands were cold and her face had a blank expression of confusion. It was like looking at a marble statue. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Hermione, step aside please." Madam Pomfrey said in the kindest voice she could to the crying girl.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The rational part of her brain made Hermione obey. And the nurse performed a quick examination for any more wounds before casting the spell to de-petrify the blonde. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur woke up with a gasp and a flying hug. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Mon Coeur? What are you doing here?" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Hermione just buried her face in the girl's neck without answering anything. Which was generally great but in the current situation quite confusing. She was out of the maze? Her parents were arguing with Madame Maxime, apparently complaining about their daughter being petrified? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wait, was I petrified?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Miss Delacour, can you tell me who did this to you?" Professor Mcgonagall asked. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I…" </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Fleur didn't even have a chance to answer. Harry appeared in the middle of the lawn in tears clinging to Cedric's body.</span>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  The walk to the train platform has never been so quiet. The Hogwarts quartet plus the veela girl could be seen from a distance. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The boys and I will go ahead." Ginny said.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"We will?" Ginny pulled Ron by the arm while murmuring something like a dense idiot.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Leaving the two girls alone now. Fleur took Hermione's hand in hers, looking affectionately into the brown eyes she loved so much.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm staying in London." her tone was decisive "I was accepted into a position at Gringotts as a Curse-breaker." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Fleur that's great!" Hermione was genuinely happy for her girlfriend "I know how much you wanted to follow this profession." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  Pulling a hair out of Fleur's face, she put her hand on the blonde's cheek. Fleur gave in to the touch instantly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"I'm not saying goodbye to you." Hermione said as the space between them narrowed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"Me neither." Fleur sighed sweetly "I want to meet you during your school holidays while I'm in London, want to know more about the city you grew up in, want to exchange letters with you." connecting your eyes with the girl's ended "I don't know what the future holds but I know I want to be by your side even when we are physically far away from each other. I will do everything to try to close that distance because...  My soul call for you and I don't want to hear any other songs just... your's." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I love you, you are my sunshine. </span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>"The beautiful part of our souls choosing each other is that I don't want to hear any other songs either. I promise to be by your side even from a distance, I love you, I love you so much." </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They shared a passionate kiss in the middle of the train station. None of them cared who saw them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They didn't say goodbye to each other. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>  They say until soon. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
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</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This whole fic is basically me bullshiting. I had a lot of fun while writing this :) Hope you guys liked, this fic is complete guys. I plan to publish more Fleurmione fics in the future. Reviews and Kudos are appreciated ;)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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